obese 


aA | 


acer 





LIBRARY OF THE THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 


PRINCETON, N. J. 


PURCHASED BY THE 
MRS. ROBERT LENOX KENNEDY CHURCH HISTORY FUND. 


Division... cdvous.4 


SCCttON...C. cadeaad-- 


a. 
mS 


wis 
‘ : 








AN OUTLINE 
JEWISH HIST ORY 


ee M. DOUBNOW 


“IN THREE VOLUMES 


Authorized Translation from the Russian 


VOL. If. 
THE MIDDLE AGES AND MODERN TIMES 


MAX N. MAISEL 


PUBLISHER 
424 Grand Street, New York, N. Y. 
1925 


Copyright, 1925, 
by Max N. Maisel 


<> 
RAD SSI) alee 


CHAPTER 


TABLE OF CONTENTS 
VoLuME III 


PART I—THE MIDDLE AGES 


I. 


II. 


ITI. 


IV. 


INTRODUCTION Meo rate ie rer tbne tig 


JEWISH SETTLEMENTS IN EUROPE 


BEFORE THE CRUSADES. .. . 


Italy and Byzantium—Spain Under the Visi- 
goths— France and Germany— Russia and 
Poland. 


Tue REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 
IN MoorisH SPAIN—950 - 1215 
7 NANG BD Pearippoaranny ey 5) NR 


The Caliphate of Cordova—Solomon Gabirol 
—The Progress of Jewish Literature—Jehuda 
Halevi—Abraham-ibn-Ezra—The Almohades— 
Spain and the East—The Life of Maimonides— 
Maimonides’ Writings. 


Tue JEWS IN CHRISTIAN E\UROPE 


DvuRING THE CRUSADES—1096- 
1 DPA SSN VEN BB UN Pa ARR ACU 


The First Crusade—The Second Crusade— 
The Third Crusade—The Condition of the Jews 
in France and Germany—Rashi and the Tossa- 
fists. 


CenTURIES OF MAartTyRDOM AND 
HarpsHie PRECEDING THE Ex- 
PULSION OF THE JEWS FROM 


FRANCE—1215-1894 A. D. . . 


Pope Innocent IlI—Persecution of the Tal- 
mud and Religious Disputes—Spain and France 


PAGE 


10 


34 


73 


98 


CHAPTER 


iia 


VII. 


VIII. 


—The Struggle Between Religion and Science— 
The Cabal and the Zohar—The Expulsion of the 
Jews from England—The Expulsion of the Jews 
from France—Germany—The Ghetto and False 
Accusations Against the Jews—The Black Death 
—lItaly. 


Tur Jews’ Last Century IN 
SpAIn—-1391-1492 A. Di... 


Jewish Courtiers and the Massacre in Se- 
ville—The Marranos—The Inquisition—Torque- 
mada—The Expulsion of the Jews from Spain 
and Portugal. 


THE JEWS IN PoLAND AND RuSSIA 


—XJItrH-XVrH CENTURIES . 


The Influx of Jews Into Poland—Casimir 
the Great, 1333-1370—The Jews Under the 
Yaghellons—The Jews in Muscovite Russia, 


PART II—MODERN TIMES 
INTRODUCTION | (4ueaten clea lice es 


Tue JEws IN TURKEY AND PALES- 
TINE Ur To THE DECLINE OF 
S ABBATHISM—1492-1750 A. D. 


Civil Life—Joseph Nassi—Palestine—The 
Shulhan Aruch—The Cabala—Ari—Sabbatai 
Zevi—The Messianic Movement and Its Fall. 


Tue Jews In WESTERN EUROPE 
From THE XVITH TO THE 
A Vilvs CENTURY) xoue eo oe 


Italy—Science and Letters in Italy—The 
Netherlands—Acosta and Spinoza—Manasseh- 
ben-Israel and the Return of the Jews to Eng- 
land—Germany—The Reformation and the Jews 
—The Condition of the Jews in Germany and 
Austria—The Intellectual Life of the German 
Jews. 


PAGE 


140 


163 


176 


178 


199 


OHAPTER 


IX. 


XI. 


Tur JEws In Russia AND POLAND 
XVItuH tro X VIItH CenTURY . 


The Golden Age—The Kahals and the Waads 
—The Growth of Rabbinism—Khmelnitzki and 
the Cossack Massacres—The Jews During the 
Musecovite-Swedish Invasion—Poland’s Decline— 
Sabbathians and Frankists. 


THe TRANSITION PrERI0D—1750- 
D7 OB ATR i ede Ca Ue 


Moses Mendelsohn—The School of Mendel- 
sohn—The Struggle for Education—The Haida- 
maks and the Partition of Poland—The Jews in 
Russia Under Peter I—lIsrael Besht and Hassid- 
ism—The Struggle Between the Rabbis and the 
Hassidim. 


A SurRvEY oF Principat Events 
DuRING THE NINETEENTH CEN- 


UE Widhie ica cad eam naman po eh halt Cel At @ 


The French Revolution—The Progress of En- 
lightenment in Western Europe—The Russian 
Jews under Alexander I and Nichols I—The 
Jews of Western Europe during the Second 
Half of the Nineteenth Century—The Jews in 
Russia during the Second Half of the Nine- 
teenth Century, 


PAGE 


234 


268 


298 


Vi) Wind 
V/MAne Wik Ny 
AN 
ah uy 
a fh; 


Vee ee 


ney 
Wie 


Ol MY 





THE MIDDLE AGES 
e4 


Introduction. 


HE thousand years which elapsed be- 
tween the downfall of the Roman EKm- 
ail pire in 476 and the discovery of 
Jap America in 1492, is called by historians 
Br") The Middle Ages. This period falls 
into two parts, during the first of which (the 
Vith to the [Xth century) the great mass of 
the Jewish people lived in the Orient, in Baby- 
lonia, Persia, Arabia, Syria, Egypt and Pales- 
tine, only small and isolated Hebrew commu- 
nities inhabiting such Western countries as 
Italy, Byzantium, Spain, France, Germany and 
Russia. From the XIth to the X Vth century, 
however, (the second part of the Middle Ages), 
the situation was reversed, only a few Hebrews 
remaining in the Kast while all the rest moved 
westward. Instead of Palestine and Babylonia, 
Germany and other European countries be- 
came centres of Jewry. 
A considerable portion of the world’s inter- 
national commerce was in the hands of the Jews, 
7 





8 Tur Mippitre AGEs 


who, ever since olden times, had been the mid- 
dlemen between Asiatic and European mer- 
chants; thus it was comparatively easy for them 
to leave the Orient for more westerly homes. 
Their migrations increased as their chief centers 
of culture fell into a more and more hopeless 
state of decay with the settling of Asia into 
its age-long sleep after being mundated by 
Mongolian tribes. 


In Europe the immigrants found Jewish set- 
tlements which had been founded in the days 
of the Roman Empire. Passing from Asia and 
Africa into Europe, Spain was the first bridge 
they had to cross. When that country fell into 
the hands of the Arabs in the VIIIth century, 
Eastern Jews penetrated with the conquerors 
into their new possession which became for sev- 
eral centuries one of the most enlightened coun- 
tries of Kurope under their transforming hands. 

The European Jews lived very differently in 
the first period than in the second. During the 
former, when their numbers were small upon the 
western continent, they enjoyed comparative 
peace, and were very seldom molested by the 
surrounding nations which were at that time 
passing through the transition stages from pa- — 
ganism to Christianity. But in the second pe- 
riod, they were persecuted and oppressed by the 
Christians in proportion as they increased in 
numbers, and the upshot of all their sufferings 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 9 


was that they were finally expelled altogether 
from many Christian countries. 

The dividing line between the two parts of 
the Middle Ages was the period of the Cru- 
sades, which began in France and Germany in 
the year 1096 A. D. 


CHAPTER I 


JEWISH SETTLEMENTS IN E.uROPE BEFORE THE 
CrusaDEsS—500-1096 A. D. 


§ 2. 
Italy and Byzantium. 


HE Roman emperors whose conquests 
deprived the Jews of their homeland, 
fn\| Judea, had nevertheless protected them 

Uig| always so long as they remained on Ro- 
ZisS| man soil. The division of the Empire 
into its Western (or Roman) and Eastern (or 
Byzantine) parts, did not affect the Jews who 
continued to live as before among Italians in the 
one part and Greeks in the other. 

Four hundred years after the destruction of 
Jerusalem by the Romans, the Jews witnessed 
the sack of Rome by the Barbarians, tribes of 
Goths and Teutons whose invasions brought 
about the complete downfall of this once invin- 
cible power (476). They witnessed also the 
gradual changes by which imperial Rome be- 
came Papal Rome, observing the circumstances 
that produced the transformation of a military 





10 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 11 


into an ecclesiastical capital, the seat of 
the Catholic Popes who were the High Priests 
of the Christian church in Europe. 


The first Roman Popes did not oppress the 
Jews, though they tried very hard to convert 
them to Christianity. Gregory the Great (590) 
granted the Jewish communities the right to 
govern themselves according to their own laws 
and customs, but he offered them all kinds of 
rewards and privileges to embrace his religion. 
Whenever friends assured him that men who 
would be willing to abandon their own faith for 
the sake of personal gain could never be sin- 
cere in another, the Pope would answer: “But 
the children and the grandchildren of such con- 
verts will be sincere Christians.” 


When Italy became part of the Western Em- 
pire ruled by Charlemagne, the prosperity of 
the Jews increased greatly, for the Emperor 
had the wisdom to value the activities of the 
Jews in the field of international commerce at 
their true worth, and he gave them his special 
protection. Under Charlemagne’s successors, 
however, the empire disintegrated and Western 
Europe came under the new system of feudal- 
ism whereby the great landowners or feudal bar- 
ons ruled as despots over their tenants, acquit- 
ting their whole responsibility towards the crown 
by the payment of tributes and furnishing of 
troops in time of war. ‘The situation of the 


12 Jewish SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


Jews now depended no longer upon one, but 
upon many rulers, so that in one place they 
would enjoy almost complete freedom, sharing 
in all but a few civil rights, while in another 
they would suffer cruel oppression. 


At that time Rome, Venice, Naples and the 
island of Sicily were the homes of large Jewish 
communities. The Popes treated the Roman 
Jews with tolerance, some even taking them un- 
der their own protection and preventing any 
restriction of their rights on the part of the 
church councils. The only prohibition laid upon 
the Jews within the Papal dominions referred 
to the employment of Christian servants in their 
homes, for fear that they might be converted to 
Judaism. ‘The conversion of Jews to Chris- 
tianity, on the other hand, was encouraged in 
many ways, and eventually a descendant of one 
such converted family even became Pope under 
the name of Anacletus II (1130-38). 

Popular legend has accounted in various ways 
for this event which is a proven historical fact. 
A learned Rabbi, Simon of Mayence, says the 
legend, had a little son named Elchanan, who 
was kidnapped. The boy was baptized and 
brought up in a Catholic monastery. When he 
grew to be a young man, he was taken to Rome 
and it was not long before his extraordinary tal- 
ents brought him to the rank of cardinal, and the 
Pope dying soon afterwards, he was elected to 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsTorY 18 


the papacy. But Elchanan longed for his own 
family and for the religion of his own people. 
So ardent was his desire to see his father once 
again that he resorted to the following ruse to 
achieve a meeting with him: He ordered the 
Bishop of Mayence to impose such hardships 
upon the Jews in his diocese that they would 
send delegates to Rome to complain before the 
Pope, and he had every hope that the vene- 
rable Rabbi Simon would be one of the en- 
voys. It fell out as Elchanan had planned; 
Simon came with others to lay before the Pope 
the protests of the Jews of Mayence against 
the Bishop’s edicts. At first Elchanan engaged 
the Rabbi in a religious dispute in which he dis- 
played a knowledge of Judaism that amazed the 
Jewish scholar, and afterwards, being a great 
lover of chess, the Pope challenged his father 
to a game. As they sat alone together over 
the board, Elchanan revealed his secret. When 
Rabbi Simon recovered from his first shock of 
surprise, he recognized his lost son in the Roman 
Pope who soon convinced him of his desire to 
return to the fold of Israel. Rabbi Simon hast- 
ened back to Mayence, taking with him the 
Pope’s order that the Bishop’s persecutions 
cease at once, and full of joyful news for his 
wife about the finding of their long-lost child. 
Shortly afterwards, the Pope disappeared sud- 
denly from Rome. He made his way secretly 


14 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


to Mayence, where he lived in the home of his 
parents professing the Jewish religion. 

Another version of the legend brings his his- 
tory to no such happy conclusion, but tells how 
the Pope, overcome with remorse at his life-long 
apostasy, atoned for it with his death as he 
leaped from the topmost spire of St. Peter’s and 
was dashed to pieces on the street below. 


In the Byzantine empire on the Balkan 
peninsula, the Jews were far worse off than in 
Italy, for the emperors had treated them with 
deep enmity ever since the days of Justinian 
(VIth century). ‘They had few civil rights, and 
were sometimes even converted to Christianity 
by force. The emperor Leo the Isaurian pub- 
lished an edict commanding all the Jews of 
Byzantium to embrace Christianity according 
to the rites of the Greek Orthodox church on 
pain of terrible punishment (723). Many made 
a pretense of accepting this ultimatum in the 
hope that the persecutions would cease after a 
while and leave them free to go back to their 
own faith, but many others preferred to go away 
from Byzantium. They went north to the coast 
of the Black Sea, to Taurida and the Crimea. 
It has also been said of the emperor Basil the 
Macedonian that he used every means in his 
power to compel the Jews to renounce their 
religion for Christianity, and when he realized 
that all his efforts were in vain he destroyed 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 15 


about one thousand Jewish communities in his 
empire. Only five were left standing, and these 
owed their escape to the intercession of the He- 
brew poet Shepahtiah, who had happened to cure 
the emperor’s daughter of insanity. Legend at- 
tributes to this poet a prayer of repentance 
written in verse, beginning with the words 
“Israel Nashah.” It is to be found in the 
Selichot and the Machzor. The following ex- 
tract depicts the mood of the persecuted people: 

“Lord, we knock at Thy door like beggars. 
Hear our prayers, Thou who dwellest on high! 
We are beset with oppression and insult on 
every side. Forsake us not, O God of our 
fathers! Send us salvation that the eyes of all 
may see. Let the evildoer cease to hold us in 
his power, and let our great sorrows have an 
end—let saviors come to Zion!” 

Persecutions as terrible as those instigated by 
Basil were, however, comparatively rare. In 
ordinary times, the Byzantine Jews, in spite of 
their disabilities, played a very important part 
in the economic life of the country. They lived 
in many Grecian cities, notably in Thrace, 
Macedonia, Thessaly and on the islands of the 
Archipelago. Communities of considerable ex- 
tent were to be found in Constantinople, the 
eapital, and in Salonika, the commercial city 
on the seacoast. The Jews engaged in a great 
variety of trades, especially in the production 


16 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN E\UROPE 


and manufacture of silk. Most popular of all 
was the dying industry and “Jewish dye” was 
famous throughout the world of commerce. In 
the large cities, Karaite and Talmudic or “Rab- 
binite” Jews established their communities side 
by side. The Jews of Constantinople lived in 
Pera, the business quarter on the sea-board. 
Their civil rights, in conformity with the old 
church laws, were greatly curtailed, but they 
enjoyed considerable freedom in all matters per- 
taining to the affairs of their commnuities which 
were ruled over by elected elders or “ephors.” 


§ 3. 
Spain Under the Visigoths. 


Jews had lived in Spain on the Pyrenean 
peninsula since time immemorial, even before 
the people of that country had been converted 
to Christianity, having settled there as subjects 
of the Roman empire when Spain became part 
of those far-flung dominions. 

In the Vth century when the Empire was 
nearing its fall a Teutonic tribe called Visigoths 
conquered Spain and established their kingdom 
in place of the Romans’ which they destroyed. 
The Visigothic kings, having adopted Christian- 
ity, granted vast power to the clergy who at 
once engaged in vigorous persecution of the 
Hebrews. King Recaredo I (589), enacted ex- 
ceedingly harsh laws against them, the aim of 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY Vi 


which was to sever the amicable relations that 
had hitherto existed between the Jews and their 
Christian neighbors, for the Catholic clergy 
feared that the Jews might lure Christians away 
from the church. The Visgoth King Sisebuto gave 
all his Hebrew subjects the alternative of becom- 
ing Christians or leaving his dominions (612). A 
great number chose to leave, but many others 
submitted to the compulsion of outwardly adopt- 
ing the alien faith, though at heart they re- 
mained loyal to Israel. A few subsequent rulers 
either modified the cruel anti-Jewish laws or 
abolished them altogether, but such tolerance 
was rare. Most of the Visigoths, being crude 
and savage, were predisposed to resort to meth- 
ods of unbridled fanaticism in their struggle to 
reduce the Jews to submission. Goaded on by 
their clergy they determined to annihilate the 
Hebrew communities in their kingdom since 
there was no converting them. 

None of these kings surpassed Receswind 
(652), Erwig (680) and Egica (687) in cru- 
elty. These barbarians reserved their utmost 
brutality for those Jews who, after having been 
forcibly converted, returned to their own reli- 
gion later on. During Egica’s reign these con- 
verted Jews became so desperate that they con- 
spired to overthrow the Visigothic dynasty. 
They entered into an alliance with their fellow- 
Hebrews in Northern Africa who were living 


18 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


very happily under their Arab rulers, and 
planned, with their assistance, to destroy the 
intolerable regime in Spain. ‘The plot was dis- 
covered and all the Spanish Jews suffered cruel 
punishment. The enraged king convened a 
special meeting of the church council and with 
the sanction of the assembled clergy, published 
the following edict (694) : | 

“In view of the fact that the Jews not only 
profaned the religion into whose fold the 
Church had admitted them after baptism, by 
continuing to observe the laws of their former 
faith, but further dared to conspire to seize the 
supreme power in our kingdom, henceforth they 
shall all be regarded as slaves and given into 
serfdom to various Christian masters who are 
deprived of the right to set them free. Children 
above the age of seven years shall be taken from 
their parents and given to Christians to 
be brought up by them.” 


It is impossible to predict what the conse- 
quences of such persecution as this might have 
been had the Visigoth domination of Spain sur- 
vived this edict long. But warlike Arab tribes, 
the Moors and Berbers, living in northern 
Africa which only the straits of Gibraltar di- 
vide from Spain, overran the country and soon 
conquered the greater part of it (711). The — 
Jews welcomed the Arabs as their saviors and 
helped them everywhere against the Visigoths. 


oe, 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 19 


The Arab chieftains, after capturing a city, 
would then leave it in the charge of their faith- 
ful allies while they pushed on farther. ‘Toledo, 
the Spanish capital, was surrendered by Jews | 
to the Arab leader Tarik; it was they who 
opened the city gates to the conquerors while 
the Catholic population sought refuge in their 
churches. And Tarik appointed Jews to main- 
tain order in the fallen city. Thus they became 
the masters of the very places from which they 
had once been so heartlessly expelled. Their 
rule once established in Spain, the Arab caliphs 
granted completed religious freedom and com- 
munal self-government to the Jews. 

In Granada, Cordova, Toledo and many 
other cities, numerous Jewish communities again 
sprang into being, and everywhere the Hebrews 
enjoyed the same independence as their brethren 
in Arab Babylonia. 


The Arab army that conquered Spain be- 
longed to the Eastern Caliphate which belonged 
at that time to the Damascus dynasty of Omay- 
yards, so that Spain was in the beginning a 
province of the Caliphate of Damascus. When 
the Omayyads were superseded by the Abbasid 
dynasty of the Baghdad caliphate, Abdurrach- 
man, the last of the Omayyads, fled to Spain 
and declared himself an independent ruler 
(755). He chose the city of Cordova for his 
capital and the Arab kingdom in Spain thus 


20 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


came to be known as the Caliphate of Cordova. 

With the reign of Abdurrachman an era of 
peaceful development opened for the Jews. 
Strictly loyal to their religion and national tra- © 
ditions, they nevertheless mingled freely with 
the enlightened Arabs in political as well as in 
intellectual activities. Working together, these 
two Semitic races brought Spain to such a high 
degree of culture that it long remained the 
brightest spot in the darkness of mediaeval Eu- 
rope. 


ah 


France and Germany. 


Jewish settlements in Gaul (France), came 
into existence at the time when that country was 
still a province of the ancient Roman empire. 
In the [Vth and Vth centuries of the Christian 
era, such communities were founded in Mar- 
seilles, Orleans, Clermont, Paris, Cologne and 
other cities. The Jews enjoyed the rights of 
Roman citizens everywhere, and lived peaceably 
side by side with the native heathens. The in- 
fluence of Christianity which began to gain an 
ever-increasing hold upon the warlike and bar- > 
barian Gauls, ought to have had a civilizing 
effect upon their crude and primitive minds; 
springing from the parent Hebrew faith it ought 
to have made a point of contact between the 
Franks and Teutons and the Jews who lived in 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History oT 


their midst. And at first the newly converted 
tribes, seeing very little different between the 
two religions, actually did mingle with the Jews 
and even intermarry with them. But this did 
not please the high Christian clergy who feared 
the Jewish influence upon the “sons of the 
Church” and at once set about destroying their 
friendship. ‘They began to show their congre- 
gations how sinful it was to continue on terms 
of amity with a people whose ancestors had killed 
Christ, and many Catholic bishops used all their 
power to make the kings either convert the Jews 
by force or expel them from their kingdoms. 


Their efforts were very successful in the new 
Frankish kingdom under Christian rulers of the 
Merovingian dynasty. (VIth to VIIth centu- 
ries). ‘These kings left the Jews completely to 
the mercy of the clergy and delivered them up 
to the laws of the church. ‘The ecclesiastical 
councils of Orleans (533-541) strictly forbade 
intermarriage; the Jews were not allowed to ap- 
pear on the streets during Passion Week and 
Easter Week; the severest punishment fol- 
lowed conversion of Christians to Judaism; a 
slave owned by a Jew might buy his freedom 
by becoming a Christian. The clergy were tire- 
less in their efforts to break off all possible con- 
tact between the Jews and the other inhabitants 
of the country, so as to set them apart as an in- 
ferior caste, not entitled to even the simplest 


22 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


rights that belong to the least of human beings. 
Not content with this, some of the Frankish 
kings and bishops tried to convert the Hebrews 
to Catholicism by violence. 

Bishop Avitus of Clermont spent much time 
and energy to persuading the Jews in his dio- 
cese to renounce the religion of their fathers, but 
his sermons bore no fruit. Only one Jew was 
baptized during Easter Week, and his apostasy 
enraged the others. One day, as he was walk- 
ing on the street, another Jew poured some evil- 
smelling oil on his head. ‘This was on Ascension 
Day, and an angry crowd of Christians destroyed 
the synagogue to its very foundations by way 
of reprisal, while the Bishop looked on, and 
threatened all the Jews with death. The next 
day the bishop summoned an assembly of the 
Jews of Clermont and offered them the choice 
of embracing Christianity or leaving the city. 
One of the poets of that time, who was also a 
monk, transcribed the Bishop’s brief speech into 
Latin verse, as follows: 

“Look what thou dost, thou old and foolish 
Hebrew people. Begin thy life anew and learn 
true faith, even in thine old age. But time is. 
too short for long discourses. Hear thou then: 
accept our religion or go hence. ‘Thou has thy 
free choice; be advised by me and remain with 
us; let the obstinate ones go.” 

After three days of painful deliberation about 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstTorRY 23 


five hundred Jews consented to be baptized and 
the rest fled to Marseilles (576). 


The Frankish king, Hilperic, and his asso- 
ciate, the learned bishop Gregory of Tours, dis- 
played extraordinary zeal in converting Jews to 
Christianity. Hilperic had a financial agent in 
Paris, a Jew named Prisk, whose shrewdness 
and honesty the king appreciated to the full, but 
he could not reconcile himself to the fact that 
Prisk insisted upon remaining a Jew. Together 
with the Bishop of Tours he tried to convert 
Prisk, but the financier stubbornly refused. One 
day the king jestingly took hold of Prisk’s head 
and bending it low, said to the Bishop, “Come, 
servant of the Lord, lay your hands upon him.” 
Prisk recoiled in horror from the sign of the 
Cross, whereupon the king flew into a great 
rage. The Bishop entered into heated argument 
with the Jew as to which of their religions was 
the true one and the latter tried to prove by rea- 
soning and quotations from the Bible that Christ 
was not the Son of God. King Hilperic then 
sent Prisk away to revise his beliefs, but find- 
ing that he was absolutely immovable, he lost 
patience and cried: “If the Jew will not believe 
of his own free will then he shall be made to 
do so.” Fearing the threats of both the secular 
and the ecclesiastical authorities, many Paris 
Jews were consenting to be baptized, but under 
one pretext or another Prisk postponed his sur- 


24 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


render, for he would not even pretend to re- 
nounce the faith of his fathers for any other. 
One Saturday as he was going to the synagogue 
which was on a by-street, he was attacked by a 
Jewish convert and killed (582). 

Dagobert, one of the last of the Merovingian 
kings, treated the Jews with the same cruelty 
as his contemporaries, the Visigoths of Spain 
were doing, and mercilessly expelled all the 
Jewish immigrants who had sought refuge from 
Spain in his kingdom. In 629 he published an 
edict, approved by the bishops, by which all 
Jews who would not consent to be baptized were 
to leave the Frankish dominions immediately. 
The chroniclers say that Dagobert took this 
step as a result of a letter from Heraclius, the 
Byzantine emperor who had also begun to per- 
secute the Jews in his empire. MHeraclius, it 
seemed, had learned from the predictions of as- 
trologers, that Byzantium would be devastated 
by a “circumcized people,” and thinking that 
this must refer to the Jews, the emperor advised 
the Frankish king to have all his Jewish sub- 
jects baptized, for otherwise they were a menace 
to every Christian kingdom. Shortly afterwards | 
a “circumcized people” did actually invade By- 
zantium; they were not Jews, however, but Arab 
Moslems. 

The fall of the Merovingian kingdom and 
the founding of the empire of Charlemagne 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 25 


brought freedom from persecution to the Jews 
of France and Germany for many years (768- 
814). This great king did not allow the clergy 
to overrule him as his predecessors had done and 
always protected the Jews who had by that time 
become the chief motive power in the industrial 
and commercial life of Europe. Charlemagne 
helped and protected their commercial enter- 
prises in France, allowing them to acquire 
landed estates and to engage in all kinds of 
trades and other activities, of which navigation 
was among the most popular. Some educated 
Jews were the emperor’s intimate friends, and 
one of these, a man of great learning named 
Isaac, was a member of the delegation sent by 
Charlemagne to the Caliph of Baghdad, 
Haroun-al-Raschid. Charlemagne’s son, Louis 
the Pious (810-840) also protected the Jews 
from the hostility of the Catholic clergy. When 
Agobard, the fanatical bishop of Lyons, began 
to incite the Christian congregations to attack 
the Jews, Louis ordered him to desist and prom- 
ised to take the persecuted people under his 
special protection. He appointed an official with 
the title of “Jewish Elder” (Magister judae- 
orum) to guard their civil and commercial 
rights. 

The empire of Charlemagne fell to pieces 
once more after the death of his son, and Italy, 
France and Germany became separate kingdoms 


26 JewisH SETTLEMENT IN EvuRopPE 


ruled over by the emperor’s descendants, whose 
power was very limited however. Under the 
feudal system, certain counts and barons enjoyed 
unlimited and all but kingly powers within 
their own domains, and the status of the Jews 
varied consequently according to the fancy of 
these various feudal lords. In one province they 
were treated with tolerance, in another perse- 
cuted. Wherever the clergy’s influence was 
powerful they were cruelly used, as in the city 
of Toulouse, where the following “ecclesiastical” 
custom was established: Once a year, before the 
Easter holidays, the elder of the local Jewish 
community had to appear before the count in 
his castle and submit to having his face smartly 
slapped, as a reminder of the sufferings of the 
crucified Christ. Later on the Jews paid a spe- 
cial tax to avoid this annual indignity. 

In Béziers, the Catholic clergy preached ser- 
mons during the Passion Week, calling upon 
the Christians to avenge themselves upon the 
Jews for crucifying Christ, and the mobs, obey- 
ing their spiritual shepherds, attacked and beat 
the unfortunate Hebrews and _ stoned their 
homes. ‘There were cases of armed resistance 
which led to bloody though futile encounters 
with the fanatical crowds. 

When the dynasty of Charlemagne died out 
in Germany, the Saxon dynasty was inaugu- 
rated with Otto the Great (Xth century), who 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 27 


annexed Italy to his possessions and received 
the title of Emperor. The German rulers re- 
garded themselves as the successors of the Ro- 
man emperors and the Jews as crown property, 
which they had inherited from ancient Rome. 
The emperors often ceded whole districts to 
their vassals, counts, barons or bishops, together 
with the Jews who lived there. In every dis- 
trict the Jews had to pay very heavy taxes for 
permission to carry on trade or commerce of 
whatever description. 

In many German cities the Jews lived in sep- 
arate communities whose chiefs were learned 
rabbis or elders. ‘The most prosperous of these 
were in Alsace-Lorraine and in the Rhine coun- 
try, Mayence, Worms, Cologne and Speyer, in 
all of which towns Talmudic schools were estab- 
lished and religious teachers once more, as in the 
past, became the people’s leaders. At the begin- 
ning of the XIth century, Rabbi Gershom, a 
certain scholar of Mayence, rose to great fame. 
He was surnamed Meyer Hahola (The light of 
the dispersed people), and was head of the 
highest Talmudic school where rabbis were 
trained for service in the communities of France 
and Germany. Like the gaons of olden times, 
Rabbi Gershom decided moot questions of law 
and made new laws when necessary. It was he 
who prohibited polygamy which still persisted 
here and there amongst the Jews of the East, 


28 JEwiIsH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


and he also ruled that no husband might divorce 
his wife without her consent. These laws were 
approved by the rabbis’ convention at Worms. 
The scholars who were graduated from Ger- 
shoms’s school were known as “the w-se men 
of Lorraine.” 


§ 5. 
Russia and Poland. The Khazar Kingdom. 


_ The first settlements of Jews in the countries 
which later on became part of Southern Russia 
were of very ancient date. In the opening cen- 
turies of the Christian era they already existed 
in the Greek dominions north of the Black Sea 
and in the Crimean peninsula, having been 
founded by emigrants out of the neighboring 
empire of Byzantium, which had colonies in all 
those countries. Two Greek inscriptions on old 
monuments found near Kerch and dated 80-81 
A. D., prove that there was in this province a 
“synagogue of the Jews,” that is, a Jewish com- 
munity and house of worship. 

In the VIIth century a powerful kingdom 
arose on the shores of the Caspian Sea. This 
was the Kingdom of the Khazars, a race of 
Tartar origin. At first they were heathens, 
but later on became acquainted with the reli- 
gions of Jews, Greeks and Arabs. The idea of 
monotheism attracted them greatly and the 
chronicles tell how Bulan, their king, expressed 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 29 


a desire to become a convert to one of these 
faiths (about 730 A. D.). The Byzantine Em- 
peror sent envoys with gifts, trying to induce 
him to embrace Christianity; the Arab caliph, 
through his ambassadors, tried to persuade him 
of the superiority of Islam. Jewish sages also 
were summoned to appear. Finding the repre- 
sentatives of each religion praised only his own, 
King Bulan decided on the Jewish as the most 
ancient, and following their king’s example, 
many Khazars embraced Judaism. The Khazar 
kings were called Khagan (cohan, or priest). 
Their capital was Ityl, near the mouth of the 
Volga at the Caspian Sea, almost where the city 
of Astrakhan now stands. 

Khagan Obadiah, one of Bulan’s descendants, 
was a particularly zealous Jew. He invited 
Jewish scholars from abroad to settle in his 
kingdom and had his subjects taught the Bible. 
He founded synagogues and regulated the order 
of divine services. The Jewish population had a 
highly civilizing influence upon the manners and 
customs of the half-savage Khazars. For a very 
long time the Jews of other countries remained 
in ignorance of this kingdom; the Spanish Jews 
heard of it for the first time in the Xth century 
when about the year 950, the Khazar King 
Joseph, a descendant of Obadiah’s, sent a let- 
ter to Spain describing the adoption of Judaism 
by his ancestors. Not long after this, however, 


380 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EK UROPE 


the Khazar kingdom was destroyed. In former 
centuries the Khazars had often invaded the Slavs 
living along the Volga and the Dnieper, and re- 
ceived tribute from them; but as the Russian 
kingdom gained power under the Kieff Grand 
Dukes, the prestige of the Khazars weakened. 
One of these Russians, Sviatoslav, seized many 
of the Khazar fortresses along the Volga and 
crowded the Khazars out of the Caspian coun- 
try (969). Some of them migrated into the 
Crimea and some were dispersed over various 
Russian territories. 

About that time Jews appeared in the Rus- 
sian city of Kieff. The Russian chronicler Nes- 
tor says that in 986 “Khazar Jews’ came to 
Kieff where the Grand Duke, St. Vladimir, 
was preparing to abandon his heathen state and 
become a Christian according to the rites of the 
Greek church. The Khazar Jews, so say the 
legends, tried to persuade him to become a Jew 
instead, and Vladimir asked them “Where is 
your country?” “In Jerusalem,” the Jews re- 
plied. “Do you live there?” persisted the Duke. 
“No,” they answered, “for God, to punish our 
ancestors, scattered them over many countries 
all over the world.” ‘Then Vladimir said: “How 
then can you teach others if God turned against 
you and dispersed your people?” So the Grand 
Duke was baptized and his subjects also. Later 
on Russian monks, educated by the Greeks, 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 31 


came to Kieff and often engaged the Jews in 
theological discussion. One of them, Theodosius 
of Pechersk, often visited the Kieff Jews and 
held long disputes with them, calling them in- 
fidels and apostates (1070). Russia was begin- 
ning to assume the same attitude towards the 
Jews as Byzantium before her. 

One hundred years after the reign of St. Vla- 
dimir, Jews still lived and carried on commerce 
in the duchy of Kieff. The Grand Duke Svia- 
topolk IL protected Jewish merchants and even 
entrusted some of them with the duty of collect- 
ing taxes and other ducal revenues. The com- 
munity was a very large one, but a great calam- 
ity befell it during the interregnum following 
the death of Sviatopolk (1118). 


Vladimir Monomachus was invited by pop- 
ular consent to occupy the throne of Kieff, but 
the new ruler kept delaying his departure for 
the duchy, and meanwhile riots broke out in the 
city. Mobs sacked the house of Putiata, one of 
the officials, and then attacked the Jews and 
plundered their homes. The inhabitants of Kieff 
again sent envoys to Monomachus, with instruc- 
tions to warn him that if he hesitated much 
longer, the riots would soon be uncontrollable. 
At that, he left immediately and as soon as he 
arrived in Kieff order was restored. 

The Jews lived on in Kieff. In the year 1124 
they suffered great loss of life and property in 


82 JEWISH SETTLEMENT IN EUROPE 


a conflagration that swept over a large portion 
of the city. A great many Jewish merchants 
were attracted to Kieff as one of the principal 
centers of exchange for European and Asiatic 
merchandise. 

Jewish emigrants from Byzantium and neigh- 
boring countries of Asia usually settled in Rus- 
sia in this duchy while those from Western Eu- 
rope chose the nearer country of Poland for 
their refuge. It is believed that Jewish mer- 
chants from Germany had had business con- 
nections with Poland since the time of Charle- 
magne and that this was the deciding factor in 
their settling there rather than in Russia. There 
is an old Polish legend concerning the Jews, 
which runs as follows: 

After the death of their duke Poppel, the 
Poles came to the assembly in Krushewitz to 
elect a successor (about 842). There was a long 
argument as to who should be elected and it was 
finally decided that the first man to enter the 
city on the following morning should be their 
duke. It happened that this was a Jew named 
Abraham Porchovnik; he was declared duke, 
but declined the honor and advised the people — 
to elect Piast instead, who was a Pole and a 
man of great wisdom. ‘They did so and Piast 
became the progenitor of the dynasty to which 
he gave his name. 

Another legend tells that towards the end of 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstTorRY 33 


the IXth century Jewish delegates from Ger- 
many came to the Polish duke Leshek with a 
petition to admit Jews to Poland, and that 
Leshek, after questioning them as to the nature 
of their religion, gave his consent, whereupon 
there was a great migration from Germany into 
his domains (894). 

The influx of Jews into Poland vastly de- 
creased towards the end of the Xth century 
when the Poles, by embracing Christianity, es- 
tablished connections with the Western or Cath- 
olic church and with the European countries 
where large communities of Jews were estab- 
lished. 


CHAPTER 11 


Tue REGENERATION OF JUDAISM IN MoorisH 
SPAIN—950-1215 A. D. 


§ 6. 
The Caliphate of Cordova. 


Y the tenth century the kingdom 
founded in Spain by the Moors in 711 
\ A had reached a high degree of prosper- 

pve) ity. It had spread over the whole 

BS) center and south of the Pyrenean 
Peninsula where vhe great cities of Cordova, 
Seville, Toledo and Granada bespoke its power. 
In the north only, small Christian kingdoms 
still lingered in Aragon and Castille. The Jews 
lived among the friendly Arabs, enjoying the 
protection of their rulers, called Caliphs, whose 
capital was Cordova. The Caliphate of Cor- 
dova reached the zenith of its glory during the 
reign of Abdurrachman IIT and Alakem II 
(912-976 A. D.), of whom the former was one 
of the most illustrious rulers of his age, whether 
Christian or Mahometan. He was famous as a 
patron of science, poetry and the arts. 

Commerce and industry flourished in the 
34 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 85 


Spain of the Arabs. .Of the country’s 
many rich and populous cities, Cordova had 
about half a million inhabitants, Mahomet- 
ans, Jews and Christians, more than a hundred 
thousand houses and many mosques and _ pal- 
aces. ‘lo the peace-loving and enlightened Cor- 
dovans, intellectual prowess was more honor- 
able than military, and in the highest circles the 
poet and the man of science commanded more 
respect than even the most famous warrior. 
The Caliph Alakem was himself a poet and 
lover of science; he spent vast sums on rare 
and valuable books and his library contained a 
collection of over four hundred thousand manu- 
scripts. The University of Cordova was the 
most famous in Europe. Scientists and writ- 
ers, both Jewish and Moor, were very often 
appointed to the highest offices in the kingdom. 
One of the most influential statesmen of that 
time was a Jew named Hasdai-ibn-Shaprut 
(915-970 A. D.) The son of a well-known citi- 
zen of Cordova, Hasdai received a good educa- 
tion; he studied philology and medicine and 
was equally at home in the Hebrew, Arabic 
and Latin languages. He possessed, besides, a 
very practical mind and exceptional adminis- 
trative ability. 

The attention of Abdurrachman having been 
drawn to Hasdai’s rare talents, the Caliph made 
him his councillor or minister of foreign affairs, 


36 Tuer REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


in which capacity all negotiations between the 
Caliph of Cordova and foreign rulers or envoys 
were conducted by him. Occupying a position 
thus eminent at court, Hasdai was tireless in 
helping his fellow-Jews. He became the chief 
of the Hebrew communities in Spain, an office 
which corresponded somewhat to that of the 
exilarchs in ancient Babylon. Under his pro- 
tection the Spanish Jews lived peacefully and 
grew rich, and whenever envoys from Byzan- 
tium or other countries of Europe or Asia came 
to Cordova, Hasdai would question them closely 
as to the condition of the Jews where they came 
from. One day the Persian ambassador told 
him that in a remote land there existed an 
independent Jewish kingdom called Khazaria, 
whose king was named Joseph. Hasdai at first 
refused to believe this joyous news. He deter- 
mined to convince himself of the truth of the 
story and ascertain whether there was indeed a 
place on the earth’s surface where some of the 
dispersed and homeless nation had actually 
founded a kingdom of their own. After a long 
search, Hasdai’s scouts discovered the route to 
the unknown Khazaria, and he then sent, by 
way of Byzantium and Russia, an envoy bear- 
ing a letter to King Joseph, begging him to 
write him the whole truth concerning his mys- 
terious kingdom. “For if I knew,” wrote Has- 
dai, “that our people do really possess a king- 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH HISTORY 87 


dom in this world which is wholly theirs, I would 
abandon my high position here, forsake my fam- 
ily, and cross mountains and valleys, sea and 
land, until I came to the place where my mas- 
ter, the Jewish king, lives. I would behold the 
peace in which this remnant of Israel dwells; 
then would I pour out my soul in praise to God, 
who has not denied His mercy to all of His 
unhappy people who have sought deliverance so 
ardently and so long in their wanderings from 
country to country. With our honor gone, 
shorn of our pride, and exiled, we have no an- 
swer to give to those who say to us: “Every 
nation has a kingdom, but you have not even a 
trace of one on all the earth.’ ” Some time later, 
Hasdai received an answer from the Khazar , 
king, or Khagan, Joseph. (About 960.) From 
this missive he learnt that the Khazar kingdom 
was not of Jewish origin and that only the 
kings and a certain section of the population 
professed Judaism. At the end of his letter, 
King Joseph said: “Our eyes are turned to- 
wards the wise men of Israel in the academies 
of Jerusalem and Babylonia. May the Lord 
hasten the promised deliverance of Israel, may 
He bring His dispersed people together while 
we yet live!” Ten years after the date of King 
Joseph’s letter, Spain received the sad news of 
the fall of the Khazar kingdom. It was not 
Hasdai’s destiny to settle in the Jewish king- 


88 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


dom; on the contrary, it was to Spain that the 
descendants of the Khagans were forced to flee 
for refuge against their conquerors. 

Hasdai, himself a scholar, was a patron and 
protector of the representatives of Jewish learn- 
ing. A Talmudic school for advanced scholars 
was founded in Cordova during his lifetime, of 
which the chroniclers give the following account: 

One of the four Talmudic scholars sent from 
Babylonia to collect money for the academy in 
Sura, who were taken prisoners by Arab sail- 
ors (see Part II, §72), was set free by Cor- 
dovan Jews paying a ransom for him. (925 
A.D.) The name of this Babylonian Talmudist 
was Moses-ben-Knoch, and he settled in Cor- 
dova without letting anybody know him for the 
great scholar he was. An accident brought the 
truth to light, however. One day he came to the 
synagogue of Cordova wearing the dress of a 
poor wanderer. The local rabbi and judge, 
Rabbi Nathan, was lecturing on the Talmud 
and trying to explain to his students some very 
intricate pomt of the law. Moses, sitting hum- 
bly near the door, saw that the rabbi’s exposi- 
tion was not very clear, but he contained his 
impatience as well as he could. After a while 
he found it impossible to remain silent any 
longer, and interpolated his own opinion upon 
the question at issue. ‘The audience listened in 
great astonishment to the profound learning of 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstrory 89 


this poor wanderer, and a number of other diffi- 
cult questions were to put him then, all of which 
he answered with a readiness that showed the 
vast extent of his knowledge. At length Rabbi 
Nathan, as he prepared to leave the synagogue 
for the day, said to his hearers: “It is not for 
me to be your rabbi; that title belongs to this 
stranger who comes here thus poorly attired. 
He is my master and hereby I declare myself — 
his pupil. Let him be elected in my place, as 
rabbi and judge of the Jews of Cordova.” 
When this was done, Moses set himself the task | 
of spreading the knowledge of the Talmud 
among the Jews all over Spain. He founded a 
school of higher learning in Cordova and had 
precious manuscripts sent there froin Baby- 
lonia. This school soon became so faraous that 
a great many eager young students ‘locked to. 
it from all parts of Spain and from the neigh- 
boring countries in the north of Africa. The 
spiritual rule of Rabbi Moses was universally 
recognized; everybody submitted without ques- 
tion to his rulings, just as in olden times the 
people accepted those of the Babylonian 
gaons. Moses did not bear the tile of gaon, but 
of rabbi (teacher), which came into general use 
thereafter among the Jews of Europe. 

The Jewish philologists and grammarians also 
enjoyed the special protection of Hasdai. Mena- 
chem and Dunash, the celebrated grammarians, 


AO Tuer REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


were living in Cordova at that time, both en- 
grossed in the study of the Hebrew language, 
but holding divergent opinions upon its gram- 
matical rules. Menachem wrote the “Machber- 
eth,” the first dictionary of the ancient Hebrew 
tongue, and Dunash reviewed it, not without 
much sharp criticism of his rival’s findings. This 
led to a heated controversy between the follow- 
ers of the two scholars; Hasdai joined the ranks 
of Dunash’s supporters and withdrew his pro- 
tection from poor Menachem. A pupil of the 
latter master was Jehuda-ibn-Hayyuz, another 
famous grammarian who was the first to estab- 
lish the rule that the stem of all Biblical words 
consisted ordinarily of three letters. 


§ 7. 


After the reigns of the Caliphs Abdurrachman 
and Alakem, the glory of Cordova began to 
decline. The Christians on the one side and the 
African Moors on the other, often raided the 
territories of the Caliphate, leaving ruin and 
havoc behind them. In 1013 Cordova itself was 

_ devastated by hordes of Arabs and shortly af- 
terwards the Caliphate fell. Arab Spain then 
split up into several petty kingdoms named 
after their capitals, Granada, Seville, Saragossa. 
Many Jews fleeing from the chaos in Cordova 
. settled in Granada, and soon after the arrival 
of these refugees, a remarkable man appeared 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History Al 


in their midst who did the same for his fellow- 
Jews in Granada as Hasdai had done in Cor- 
dova. This was Samuel Halevi, who later on 
teceived the title of Nagid (chief, elder). 

A. native of Cordova, Samuel received in his 
youth a liberal education, both religious and 
secular. He was equally familiar with Hebrew 
and Arabic, wrote with great literary distinc- 
tion and was an admirable caligrapher, a talent 
very highly esteemed in those days. 


After the fall of Cordova, Samuel settled in 
the city of Malaga, which belonged to the king- 
dom of Granada. There the proceeds of a small 
spice-shop afforded him a very meagre liveli- 
hood. His shop stood next door to the residence 
of Alarif, the vizier of Granada, and Samuel 
used to write letters for one of the maid- 
servants to her master in Granada. Alarif be- 
came interested in those letters written in so 
beautiful a hand and so elegantly expressed. 
Coming one day to Malaga, the vizier made a 
point of meeting Samuel and was greatly as- 
tonished to find the modest shopkeeper a man 
of wide learning and distinguished intellect. 
“Your place is not here,” he said to Samuel, 

/. \“but at my side; henceforth you shall be my 
adviser.” ‘The vizier took Samuel back to Gra- 
nada, and made him his secretary. Several 
years later Alarif was taken ill and on his 
death-bed he indicated Samuel to Gabus, king 


4.2 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


of Granada, as a man likely to be very useful 
in an administrative capacity. King Gabus, who 
set scholarship at the highest value, made Sam- 
uel his intimate and entrusted him with the 
supervision of important matters of state. (1027 
A. D.) Samuel occupied the exalted office of 
vizier of Granada for twenty-eight years. His 
wise rule helped to increase the country’s pros- 
perity; he set the kingdom completely in order 
and was very often successful in keeping it out 
of military encounters which would have been 
risky and dangerous. This Jewish official had 
many enemies among the prominent Arabs who 
were angered that a Jew should occupy a posi- 
tion of such eminence at court. But Samuel 
disarmed even his bitterest foes by his good na- 
ture and gentleness. Conscientious in his duty 
as a statesman, he was also diligent in further- 
ing the interests of his own people. King Gabus 
appointed him “nagid,” that is, chief over all the 
Jews in his kingdom, and while he held this 
office, Samuel did much to raise their civil status. 

His protection was extended not only to the 
Jews in Spain, but also to the communities in 
North Africa, Babylonia and the Holy Land. 
And in the midst of all the arduous work which 
his high position entailed he still found time to 
hold Talmudic lectures for the exposition of the 
law to those who sought and loved learning. He 
supported poor scholars and employed scribes 


OvuTLINE oF JEw1sH History 43 


to copy the Talmud in manuscripts which he 
then gave to indigent students free of charge. 
Samuel wrote a book entitled “An Introduc- 
tion to the Talmud” (Mebo-ha-Talmud) 
wherein he tries to explain the origin of the 
“verbal teachings” and to describe the methods 
by which the Talmudists interpreted the Bible. 
This “Introduction” is to be found in all the 
editions of the Babylonian Talmud. Besides 
this work Samuel wrote a book of religious 
songs in verse, in imitation of the Psalms (Ben- 
Tehilim), a book of Parables (Ben-Mishleh) 
after the Parables of Solomon, and a collection 
of philosophical meditations (Ben-Koheleth) 
like of the Book of Ecclesiastes. 


He died in 1055 and was succeeded by his 
son Joseph as vizier of Granada and Jewish 
nagid. Joseph held these offices during the 
reign of King Badis, the son of Gabus, render- 
ing great services to the kingdom. But influ- 
ential Moors, envious of the great Jew, con- 
spired to bring about his downfall. During a 
war in which Granada was engaged, his enemies 
circulated false rumors to the effect that it was 
he who had invited the enemy into the country 
with the object of setting another king upon 
the throne of Granada. The Arab populace 
credited these rumors and one day a frenzied 
mob rushed the vizier’s palace. Joseph black- 
ened his face with charcoal in an attempt to 


4A Tur REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


save himself from recognition by the crowd and 
hid in one of the farthest chambers of the pal- 
ace. But they found and killed him there, and 
his body was hanged near the gate of Granada 
(1066 A. D.). Then the mob attacked the 
other Hebrews, killing and robbing several hun- 
dred families. ‘The rest saved themselves by 
flight and amongst the fugitives were the wife 
and son of the murdered vizier. This fearful 
outbreak had a powerful and far-reaching effect 
upon the fate of the Jews throughout Granada; 
after fifty years of peace and prosperity they 
had to leave the country and migrate to other 
Moorish possessions in Spain. 

Wars between the Arabs of southern Spain 
and the Christians of the north, were becoming 
more and more frequent. At last Christian 
Castile and Arab Seville met in open warfare, 
the Sevilians summoning to their aid the war- 
like tribe of the Almoravides from Africa. A 
bloody battle took place near Solac in which the 
Moors were victorious (1086 A. D.). Jews 
fought bravely in the ranks of Mahometans and 
Christians alike, for there were at that time 
many Jews in Castile. Because of the religious 
requirements of the combatants, the day of 
battle had to be arranged so as not to fall on 
Friday, for that was the Sabbath of the Mos- 
lems, nor on Saturday, the Sabbath of the Jews, 
nor on Sunday, the Sabbath of the Christians. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 45 


The Almoravid conquerors established their do- 
minion in southern Spain and retained supre- 
macy there for the following half-century. 


§ 8. 


Solomon Gabirol. The Progress of Jewish 
Iuterature. 


There were so many Jewish scholars and 
poets in Spain during the XIth and XIIth cen- 
turies that this period has justly received the 
title of the “Golden Age of Hebrew Litera- 
ture.” One of these who lived at the time of 
Samuel Nagid (1020-1058 A.D.) was the 
famous poet Solomon-ibn-Gabirol. Born in 
Malaga he lost both his parents when very 
young and in this forsaken state he was doomed 
to a life of wandering and poverty. Drifting 
from one city to another, he finally settled in 
Granada where Samuel took him under his 
protection. Gabirol’s verse, as distinguished for 
its profound emotional quality as for the sonor- 
ous melody of its cadences, delighted his con- 
temporaries no less than later generations. It 
is in his sacred poems which are read in syna- 
gogues to this day, that the inspired character 
of his genius is perhaps most striking. ‘These 
poems voice the sorrows of the scattered nation 
and the longing of the faithful soul that seeks 
God with unremitting devotion. The following 
is a typical example of his popular hymns: 


46 Tut REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


“In a foreign land the hapless captive is be- 
come a slave, a slave of Egypt (1. e., the alien). 
Since the day, O Lord, when Thou didst first 
forsake her, she has awaited Thy return. All 
things have an ending but to my troubles there 
is no end. Year follows year and my wounds 
heal not. ‘Tortured and trodden underfoot, 
bent under a heavy yoke, robbed and stripped, 
how long, O God, shall we bewail our insults, 
our age-long bondage? Ishmael (Islam) is 
like the lion and Esau (Christianity) like the 
vulture; when the one is done with us the other 
comes to torture us yet more.” 

Gabirol’s religion found its loftiest and most 
powerful expression in a long hymn called the 
“The King’s Crown” (Kether-Malchus). ‘This 
noble composition, which has been incorporated 
into the service on Yom-Kippur, contains a 
great deal of philosophy concerning the main 
dogmas of creed, the attributes of the Deity and 
the marvels of the created world, the wisdom 
of God’s ways and the mysterious forces of the 
human soul. : 


Another of Gabirol’s works dealing with these 
religious and philosophical subjects is “The 
Source of Life.” He was a follower of the 
Greek Plato and of the Hebrew Philo of Alex- 
andria.. “The Source of Life,” translated from 
Arabic into Latin, was widely used by the 
Christian theologians of the Middle Ages who 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 47 


knew the author under the name of Avicebron. 
Gabirol died at the age of 38 years and the fol- 
lowing popular legend arose about his death. 
An Arab who envied him his greatness as a 
thinker and a poet, secretly killed him and 
buried the body under a fig-tree in his garden. 
Immediately the tree began to bear fruit of such 
wonderful flavor and size that tales about it 
reached the ears of the king himself who sum- 
moned the Arab to appear before him 
and explain how he managed to grow 
such magnificent fruit. When Gabirol’s mur- 
derer, taken unawares, began to grow confused 
in his explanation, the king gave orders to get 
the truth from him by means of torture. The 
Arab confessed his crime and the king had him 
hanged on the fig-tree that had betrayed him. 

The succeeding generations of poets were all 
imitators of Gabirol and of these Moses-ibn- 
Ezra (1070-1138 A. D.) was one of the most 
gifted. He belonged to a family of Granada, 
and while still a youth fell in love with a 
daughter of his brother’s and asked her hand in 
marriage. But the brother refused and in his 
grief Moses left his native city and went to 


. Castile. Having renounced happiness, he sought 


forgetfulness in poetry and philosophy. He 
sang of the sorrows and disillusionments of life, 
of the treachery of friends, of the malice and 
falseness of all men. Now and then, however, 


48 Tur REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


the poet seemed to take heart again and dream 
of a quiet life of peace in the bosom of nature, 
_ and then his verse would be in praise of beauty, 

and of the ecstasy of youth. The secular poems 
“make up a volume of lyrics under the title of 
“Tarshish.” Later on, Ibn-Ezra devoted him- 
self almost entirely to religious themes as Gabi- 
rol had done before him. He wrote some two 
hundred “prayers of repentance” (selichoth), 
many of which are read in synagogues still. 
Besides his poems, which were all written in 
Hebrew, Ibn-Ezra wrote many books on rhe- 
toric, philosophy and ethics, but these were only 
an imitation of Arab works of the same kind. 

Among the thinkers of that time, one, Bahya- 
ibn-Pakuda, a rabbi of Saragossa, was especially 
well known. He wrote an excellent book on 
moral duties called “Duties of the Heart’ 
(Hovoth-ha-Levavoth). He divides the entire 
law into two parts: “rites,” or duties of the 
body, and moral precepts, or duties of the heart, 
and gives to the latter a far higher place than 
to the former. The object of this work was to 
awaken and develop in every Jew a deep moral 
consciousness. Translated from Arabic into He- | 
brew it became the favorite reading of all think- 
ing people, and centuries later, translated into 
the Jewish vernacular, it was eagerly read at 
the common people. 

Among the Talmudists of the golden age, 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 49 


Isaac Alfasi was admitted the greatest master. 
(1103 A. D.) He was a native of Fez (which 
is called Fas in Arabic, whence Isaac’s name), 
and settled in Spain at the time of the Almo- 
ravid conquests. He was a celebrated Talmud- 
ist even in his native city and his fame pro- 
ceded him to Spain where students, wishing to 
improve their knowledge of the law, flocked to 
him from all over the country. The city of 
Lacena, where Alfasi occupied the position of 
rabbi, became the center of rabbinical learning, 
as Cordova had been before it. To facilitate the 
study of the Talmud, Alfasi wrote his famous 
work, “‘Galachoth,” the Rudiments of the Juaw. 

In the Baylonian Talmud, which consists of 
many books, tne portion dealing with matters of 
the law (Galacha) is not separated from that 
dealing with matters of ethics (Hagada). Aj- 
fasi extracted the ethical data scattered all over 
this immense collection, shearing them of all su- 
perfluous commentary, and collected them into 
a “Little Talmud.” This work made the study 
of the Talmud considerably easier and was the 
first step towards a systematic classification ot 
the Hebrew law. 


§ 9. 
Jehuda Halevi. 


Hebrew poetry in Spain found its highest ex- 
pression in the work of Jehuda-Halevi (1086- 


50 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


1142 A. D.) A native of Christian Castile, ' 
Jehuda left his home to live in Moorish Spain, » 
and was educated there in the schools of the 
most eminent ‘T'almudists and philosophers. He 
also studied medicine and returning in after 
years to Castile he made his living by the prac- 
tice of medicine. But most of his time was de- 
voted to poetry, philosophy and theology. As 
a poet, Jehuda Halevi greatly surpassed his 
predecessors, even the illustrious Gabirol. In 
the suave, melodious verse of his young days, 
he sang of nature, of love and of the charms 
of living. He very often turned his poetic gift 
to such everyday themes as laudatory odes to 
his friends and patrons, riddles, humorous bal- 
lads, etc. With increasing years, however, 
Halevi’s muse grew graver and more sad. The 
poet found the inspiration of his middle age 
in the tragic fate of the Hebrew nation; its for- 
mer greatness and its decline, its hopes and 
disappointments, its endless sorrow and _ long- 
ing. All the grievous history of his race found > 
reflection in Jehudah Halevi’s work. The la-> 
mentations of the long-suffering people resound 
in poems where the singer implores God to set 
a term to their exile in many lands. 

“On the wings of an eagle didst Thou bear 
the dove (the Hebrew nation); Thou gavest 
her shelter upon Thy bosom, Thou hast hidden 
her in quiet places. Why then hast Thou for- 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH History 51 


saken her now, so that, not knowing whither, 
she must wander through forests forever where 
snares are laid to entrap her every step. The 
stranger tempts her with alien gods, but she 
weeps in secret for the One, the chosen of her 
youth. ... Why then, doth her heavenly 
Friend stay so far from her? Why do her 
enemies so oppress her?” 

The most powerful of all Halevi’s patriotic 
poems are those wherein he reveals his passion- 
ate yearning for the ancient homeland of Israel, 
for the Holy Land and Zion, the demolished: 

“O beauteous land, joy of the world, abode 
of a great King! From the distant West my 
soul yearns towards thee! I burn with pity 
when I recall thine ancient greatness which is 
no more, thy temple that lies in ruins. O, that 
the wings of the dove might carry me thither! 
I would drench thy dust with my tears! I 
would kiss and embrace thy stones, yea the 
taste of thy stones would be sweeter than honey 
in my mouth! My heart is in the East, yet I 
am in the farthest West; how then should I 
find savour in my food? How should I keep 
my vows while Zion is fast in the chains of 
Edom (Crusaders), and I languish under the 
Moorish yoke? All the treasures of Spain could 
not lure me back were I but once to behold 
with mine own eyes the ruins of thy fallen 
temple.” 


52 THe REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


_ This longing for Zion was no mere poet’s 
frenzy soon to pass: it filled Jehudah Halevi’s 
whole soul, and to see the land of his fore- 
fathers became the dearest wish of his heart. 
_ 'Fowards the end of his. life, he realized his 
dreams... When his wife died, he left his seques- 
tered home in Spain, his relatives, pupils and 
friends, and set out on his pilgrimage to the 
distant Holy Land. After a long voyage across 
the Mediterranean, he reached Egypt and there 
met many prominent and learned Jews. From 
- there he went to Palestite where the Crusaders, 
having recently taken the country from the Mo- 
hametans (1140) were beginning to make their 
presence felt. What befell the poet in the 
~ Holy Land history does not say; it is not known 
' whether or not he ever reached Jerusalem, his \ 
ultimate destination. All we know is that he | 
died in Palestine, probably not long after he 
arrived. A popular legend tells that, coming 
to the gates of the Holy City, he fell weeping 
to the ground and in that moment began his 
famous elegy, “Zion, thou wilt ask of the fate 
of thine exiles.” While the poet lay there, an 
Arab horseman passed by, so the story goes, — 
and rode his horse over the Jew’s prostrate 
form, trampling him to death. 


The elegy referred to in this legend is one 
of the noblest of his “Songs of Zion.” To this | 
day it is read in the synagogues on the ninth \ 


OUTLINE or JEwisu History 53 


day of Ab. The following are some extracts 
from it. 


“Zion, thou wilt ask of the fate of thine 
exiles who send thee greeting, the remnants of 
thy scattered flock. From west and east, from 
north and south, they greet thee, from far and 
near. The prisoner in lifelong bondage to his 
love for thee gives thee greeting also. He — 
sheds his tears like dew on Hermon and yearns 
to shed them on thy mountain-sides. Ah, could 
IT but ease my soul of its burden there, where — 
the spirit of the Lord descended upon thy 
chosen ones! Thou, the abode of Kings, the 
glorious throne of God! Why do slaves now 
sit upon the thrones of thy lords? How should 
IT eat or drink when I see dogs tearing at the 
bodies of thy lions and how rejoice in the light 
of the sun when I behold the vultures devour- 
ing thine eagles? Hearest thou not the moan- 
ing of the prisoners striving towards thee in. 
their prison cells? Can Shinear and Patras 
(Babylon and Egypt) think to rival thy splen- 
dor, or is their superstition comparable to the 
wisdom that is thme? Who is like unto thine 
anointed, to thy prophets, thy Levites and thy 
singers?” | 

Halevi was not only a great poet but a deep 
thinker too, as he proves in the “Khazari,” his 
philosophical work written in Arabic and later 
translated into Hebrew. The foundations of 


54 Tur REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


the Jewish religion are therein expounded in 
the form of a discourse between a Khazar 
king, a would-be convert to Judaism, and a He- 
brew scholar. In the opinion of Jehudah Halevi, 
revelations are of greater importance than rea- 
son, since they come direct from God and 
human reasoning is liable to err. The revela- 
tions of Sinai, upon which the religion of Israel 
was based, are an indisputable fact, he declares, 
witnessed by tens of thousands of Israelites. 
God revealed Himself first to them, because 
they, before any other, showed themselves capa- 
ble of knowing Him. It became their mission, 
therefore, to carry the truth to all the rest of 
mankind, just as the heart sends the blood all 
over the body, giving it life. ‘The obligations 
imposed upon the Jew by his religion are multi- 
plied in order that he might find direction in 
his every step towards spiritual perfection, and 
that his every action might be performed in the 
name of the divine law. Judaism strives to- 
wards the development of the spiritual forces 
Jatent within man. It differs from Hellenism 
in that it places truth and goodness above | 
beauty. “Do not be carried away by Greek 
wisdom,” Halevi used to say, “for it has only 
blossoms, but no fruit.” 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 55 


§ 10. 
A braham-ibn-Ezra. 


Abraham-ibn-Ezra, friend and contemporary 
of Halevi, was born in Toledo in 1089. A 
man of outstanding intellect, he soon mastered 
the arts and sciences of his time. One art, how- 
ever, he never learnt, that of living and work- 
ing quietly. Throughout his life he was a 
stranger to success; everything he understood 
was foredoomed to failure. “If I had dealt 
in shrouds for the dead,” he complains, “I be- 
lieve not one man would have died so long as 
I lived. If I had been a candle-merchant, the 
sun would never have set until my dying-day.” 
) Abraham-ibn-Ezra travelled extensively in Eu- 
‘rope, Asia and Africa, and wherever he 
stopped, he enjoyed the protection of wealthy 
Jewish patrons. While in Rome he began to 
write his famous “Commentary upon the 
Bible.” This was the first commentary in which 
the Scriptures had been interpreted according 
to history and grammar without any arbitrary 
explanations. Up to that time, the Biblical 
writings had been expounded by law-makers, 
philosophers and moralists, each of whom ex- 
erted much ingenuity to make his reading fit his 
own ideas and serve his particular purpose. 
Ibn-Ezra, however, desired to arrive once again 
at the true meaning of the Bible of old and 


56 Tre REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


‘clear its interpretations from the former com- 
mentators’ mistakes. He succeeded to a con- 
siderable degree, but very often found himself 
unable to publish his opinions openly for fear 
of being accused of heresy. Wherever he met 
this obstacle he deliberately clothed his thought 
in very vague expressions from which so much 
was omitted and so much merely hinted at that 
only the highly-discerning could get at his mean- 
ing at all. In spite of these precautions, he was 
regarded in later years as a heretical writer, 
and his commentary was used only by free- 
thinkers. 


Besides the commentary, his most important 
work, Ibn-Ezra wrote many books on gram- 
mar, astronomy, mathematics and philosophy, 
as well as religious and secular poems. He was 
a past master of poetic form, but for depth 
and sincerity of feeling, his verse is far inferior 
to that of Halevi. There is a legend that tells 
how the two poets became acquainted. Jehu- 
dah Halevi was familiar with the poems of Ibn- 
Ezra, but had never met their author. One 
day a poor wanderer stopped at Halevi’s home, 
without telling the poet who he was. Halevi 
was working on a long poem in the form of an 
acrostic. When he came to the letter R, the 
poet came to a halt, either because his invention 
had failed him or because he found himself at 
a momentary loss for a word or line. Greatly 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 57 


annoyed, he left the unfinished manuscript on 
the table and went to bed. ‘The next morning 
he rose and to his amazement found a beautiful 
line written on the page where he had left off. 
“Only an angel or Abraham-ibn-Ezra could 
have done this,” cried the astonished author, 
whereupon the poor wanderer revealed his 
name; it was Ibn-Ezra. 

After a long and roving life, he at last 
turned his steps towards home, but on the very 
border of Spain he died (1167). 

The last poet of the Golden Age was Jehu- 
dah Alcharisi (about 1165-1225). <A native of 
Spain, he spent many years abroad, mostly in 
the cities of Southern France. JLater on, he 
made a journey to the East, visiting Egypt, 
Syria‘ and Palestine, Alcharisi’s chief fame 
rests upon his book called “Takchemoni.” In 
this work, divided into fifty parts, where ryth- 
mic prose is interspersed with verse, the poet 
tells in a very vivid and entertaining manner 
the story of his travels and adventures in vari- 
ous countries. The account is enlivened now 
with poetic allegories, now with witty charac- 
ter portraits of the types he met, now with lite- 
rary discourses. In the course of his writings, 
Alcharsi draws accurate portraits of the great 
poets who preceded him, Gabirol, Halevi, Ibn- 
Ezra and others. His own work marks the 
beginning of the decline of Hebrew poetical lit- 


58 Tuer REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


erature in Spain; he is rather a versifier than 
a poet and even classifies himself with the 
“imitators, who pick up the crumbs that fall 
from the table” of the great ones. 


The Hebrew literature of that period was 
rich in everything except. historical chronicles 
and descriptions of Jewish life in the countries 
where the dispersed people had settled. This 
lack was partially filled by the works of Abra- 
ham-ibn-Daud and Benjamin of Tudela. Ibn- 
Daud of Toledo (author of a religio-philosoph- 
ical treatise “Sublime Waith” or ‘“Emuna- 
Rama”) wrote a short “Book of Legends” 
(Sopher-ha-Kabbala), where the chief events of 
Jewish history are recorded. ‘The most impor- 
tant part of the book is that which contains the 
data concerning the history of the Spanish 
Jews before 1180. Benjamin’ of Tudela trav- 
elled for about thirteen years (1160-78), all 
over the then known world, and described his 
impressions in his “Masaoth Benjamin.” He 
tells of the lands he visited, of the Jewish com- 
munities there, of the occupations and customs 
of the natives, Jewish and Gentile, of their 
legends, architecture, monuments and so forth. 
He writes not only of the things he himself 
saw, but also of those described to him by 
others. Like all the travellers of the Middle 
Ages, he very often does not distinguish between 
legend and fact; nevertheless much of the infor- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 59 


mation in his book sheds considerable light on 
Jewish history of that period and on the geog- 
raphy of the world as it then was. 


Se a Bee 
The Almohades. Spain and the East. 


In the middle of the XIIth century a vast 
calamity befell the Jews of Arab Spain. A 
new Mohametan sect called the Almohades, 
the enemies of all non-Mohametans, was 
founded in northern Africa. Its founder, who 
called himself “Mahdi” or prophet, preached 
the obligation to spread Islam over the whole 
world by force of arms. The Almohades first 
established themselves in Morocco, where many 
Jews lived, and these they threatened with in- 
stant death unless they accepted the religion of 
Mahomet. The Jews were desperate; a great 
many fled to Egypt or Spain and those who 
remained behind became converted in name 
only. The Jews and Christians who lived in 
other African cities conquered by the Almo- 
hades, suffered equally violent treatment. Syn- 
agogues and churches were destroyed every- 
where and the unhappy congregations forcibly 
dragged into the mosques. Jews compelled to 
pretend conversion, continued to observe the 
laws of their own faith in secret. 

Shortly after their first outbreaks, the Almo- 
hade hordes invaded Spain, occupying Cordova - 


60 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


‘and destroying the magnificent synagogues 
there (1148). They next took Granada and 
Seville and established their dominion in the 
south of the peninsula after crowding the AI- 
moravides out of their possessions there. The 
fanatical conquerors treated the Jews in Spain 
just as they had treated their brethren in 
Africa. The flourishing communities in Anda~ 
lusia were laid waste; the Hebrew schools and 
academies in Seville, Lucene and other cities 
were closed. Many Jews were compelled to 
embrace Islam though they, too, did so only 
nominally; others fled to the Christian king- 
doms of Spain or to Egypt. 


At that time a movement for freedom was 
gaining momentum among the Jews of West- 
ern Asia. ‘The center of this movement was 
in Baghdad, the seat of the exilarch or chief 
of the communities of Syria, Mesopotamia and 
Persia. ‘The mountainous regions of Persia 
were inhabited by free Jews famous for their 
warlike spirit, and in the midst of these brave 
mountaineers there appeared a man whom the 


people believed to be the Messiah (1160). His / 


name was David Alroy and he came from the 
Persian city of Amadia. He had received a 
good education in Hebrew and Arabic in the 
schools of Baghdad and there, as he grew up, 
he saw the gradual disintegration of the cali- 
phate. He then decided to become an inde- 


OUTLINE OF JEWwIsH History GIy 


pendent ruler of his people and issued a procla- 
mation to all the Jews of Asia to the effect that 
he had. been sent by God to deliver them from 
the Moslem yoke and lead them to Jerusalem. 
The call to arms was answered by many Jews 
who flocked to Amadia with their weapons hid- 
den underneath their cloaks so as not to excite 
undue suspicion. ‘The legend relates how the 
Sultan of Persia, hearing of the Jewish upris- 
ing, summoned David Alroy to appear before 
him, and how he came without escort to the 
royal palace, fearlessly calling himself King 
of the Jews. He was thrown instantly into 
prison, but by means of magic, so the story 
runs, made his escape and reappaared in Ama- 
dia, where his followers received him with great 
rejoicing. The populace believed then that he 
was a miracle worker as befitted the messenger 
of God. The self-styled Messiah was, however, 
soon to fall victim to a conspiracy; he was 
slain as he slept by his own father-in-law acting 
under orders of the Persian authorities. But 
even after his death there remained in Baghdad 
a group of his followers who still believed in 
him as the Messiah, basing their faith on the 
miracle of his immediate deliverance from pri- 
son. Certain impostors profited by the credul- 
ity of the populace to further their own ends; 
they caused to be circulated amongst the Bagh- 
dad Jews a letter supposed to have been writ- 


62 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


ten by the Messiah, saying that the day of 
deliverance was at hand and that it would be 
manifested as follows: 


At a certain hour, near midnight, the Jews 
were to put on green garments and _ station 
themselves upon the roofs of their houses; a 
strong wind would then arise and carry them 
all straight to Jerusalem. The gullible follow- 
ers of the Messiah gave the false messengers all 
their possessions to divide among the poor, and~ 
at the appointed time they did as the letter in- 
structed. They sat on their roofs all night, 
the men with their wives and children, waiting 
for the miracle to come to pass. But the 
“flight”? did not occur and at last they realized 
the mistake they had made. ‘The impostors, 
having robbed them of all they owned, had 
completely vanished. The Baghdad populace 
, jestingly referred to this time as the “flying 
year.” 

The conquests of the Almoravides, and later 
of the Almohades, in Spain, bound that coun- 
try more and more closely to the Moors’ native 
land in the north of Africa. Oppressed by the 
Almohades many Spanish Jews migrated to the 
more peaceful African kingdoms, especially to 
Egypt, then ruled over by the great sultan 
Saladin, the conqueror of Syria and Palestine 
(1171). A devout Mahometan, Saladin, never- 
theless, treated the Jews with complete toler- 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH HiIsTory 63 


ance. He allowed them to live in Jerusalem 
whence the Christians had expelled them. In 
Egypt proper they lived in well-ordered com- 
munities, enjoying all the privileges of self- 
government. ‘Their chief was a Jewish official 
bearing the title of “nagid” or exilarch. He 
appointed rabbis and cantors for communities 
and synagogues, settled civil and criminal cases 
in which Jews were the litigants, and had the 
right to sentence the guilty not only to pay 
fines but to suffer corporal punishment or im- 
prisonment as he thought fit. The chief Jew- 
ish communities were those of Cairo, the Egyp- 
tian capital, and Alexandria. 


§ 12, 
The Life of Maimonides. 


Moses-ben-Maimon, surnamed Maimonides 
(Rambam), was born in 1185 in the city of 
Cordova where his father held the office of ec- 
clesiastical eas (dayon) of the Jewish com- 
munity. 

His student years fell during the brilliant 
epoch when the Spanish Jews and the Moors 
were giving so many eminent scholars, philo- 
sophers and poets to the world. In his youth 
Maimon diligently studied the Taliiud and 
philoséphy and the natural sciences, and he also 
read a great deal in Hebrew and Arabic. 

But when he was in his thirteenth year the 


64 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


Almohades took possession of Cordova and gave 
the Jewish inhabitants the choice of either leav- 
ing the city or embracing Islam. Maimonides’ 
family chose the former alternative and set forth 
on a life of wandering and privation. As they 
drifted from one city to another, the young 
Moses pursued his studies with tireless energy, 
studying under Arab scholars whom he would 
chance upon in each place. Among other things 
they taught him was the science of medicine. 

The hardships to which he and his family had 
been condemned for the sake of their religion, 
directed his thoughts however, mainly towards 
the study of the law and theology of Judaism, 
and he was fired with ambition to shed the 
light of learning and orderliness upon the ob- 
scurities he encountered in his religious studies. 
When he was but twenty=three years old he be- 
gan his vast commentary on the Mishnah, itself 
the Biblical commentary which is the founda- 
tion of the Talmud. 


In the. meanwhile he had moved south with 
his family to Africa and settled in Fez. This 
city was also ruled by the fanatical Almohades, 


who forced Islam upon the Jews wherever they — 


held sway. ‘Thus Moses, his father and all his 
kindred were compelled to become Moslems out- 
wardly, while continuing to observe the laws of 
their true religion in secret. But the Moslems 
soon found out their deception and they had to 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 65 


flee to Palestine. (1165 A. D.) Their ship 
was six days out when a great storm arose over 
the Mediterranean, and they were all but 
wrecked. ‘The wretched travellers suffered un- 
told anguish and alarm, and knew their only 
hope of rescue was in praying for the mercy of 
God, which they did with much weeping. At 
last after a four-weeks’ voyage, the ship put in 
at the port of Acco where the weary fugitives 
spent a few months before going on to Jerusa~ 
lem. It was their ambition to visit the Holy 
City and pray on the spot where the Temple of 
old had stood. From Jerusalem they continued 
their pilgrimage to Hebron, where Moses spent 
one whole day in prayer in the cave that held, 
according to legend, the vaults wherein the He- 
brew patriarchs were buried. ‘Then the wan- 
derers went into Egypt and settled in Old 
Cairo (Fostat). | 
In Cairo Moses Maimonides began to earn 
his livelihood by the practice of medicine, but 
he did not cease to work at the books he was 
writing on religion and philosophy. He soon 
became famous among Arabs and Jews alike as 
a physician of remarkable skill and a profound 
scholar. The illustrious Sultan, Saladin ap- 
pointed him Court Physician, and the young 
doctor received besides the title of “nagid,” i. e., 
elder or patriarch of all the Jews in Egypt. 
He thus became the spiritual guide of his co- 


66 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


religionists not only in Egypt but in all the © 
countries of the Orient, and from far and wide 
he would be called upon to determine questions 
religious and secular. After Saladin’s death in 
1193, Maimonides remained court physician to 
the new sultan. 

In a letter to a fellow-scholar, Maimonides 
thus describes his daily life: 

“The Sultan lives in New Cairo and I in 
Fostat (the old portion of the city). Every 
morning I have to report at court. If the sul- 
tan or any of his wives or children happens to 
be indisposed, I must remain at the palace all 
day, but even when my services are not needed 
I cannot return to Fostat until the afternoon. 
When I get home I find my antechamber full 
of people, Mahometans and Jews, persons of 
consequence and simple citizens, judges and offi- 
cials, awaiting my return. I dismount from my 
donkey, wash, and then go to greet them, apol- 
ogizing and asking them to wait while I have 
my meal. I then receive my patients, and give 
them treatments and prescriptions. In this way 
there is a continuous coming and going until 
evening. By that time I am very tired, but I — 
nevertheless take part in scholarly debates which 
sometimes last until after midnight. Only on 
the Sabbath have I an opportunity to meet and 
speak with the members of the community and 
give them my instructions for the week.” 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 67 


Maimonides died in 1204 at the age of 69 
years. In Cairo he was mourned not only by 
the Jews but by the Mahometans as well, and 
the Jewish community in Jerusalem declared a 
day of fasting and prayer in which to lament 
their great loss. His body was taken to the 
Holy Land and buried in Tiberias. His only 
son, Abraham, succeeded him as court physician 
and “nagid” of the Egyptian Jews. 


§ 13. 
Maimonides Writings. 


The fame of Moses Maimonides increased 
after his death when his works became widely 
known. It was said of him: “From Moses to 
Moses there was none like Moses,” meaning 
from the Moses of the Pentateuch to Maimon- 
ides. And indeed no one since the ancient au- 
thors of the Pentateuch and the Mishnah had 
done as much as he for the development of Ju- 
daism. In his first book, written originally in 
Arabic and later translated into Hebrew, a vast 
commentary on the Mishnah called “The 
Torch,’ Maimonides presented with great lu- 
cidity the contents of the “verbal teachings.” 
While the Gemarah often made the meaning of 
the Mishnah obscure and confusing, the “Torch” 
made all clear and simple. But Maimonides 
was not content with this. The many volumes 


68 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


of the Talmud contained such an enormous and 
disorderly mass of laws, scientific data and 
moral teachings, that to study them all was a 
life-work in itself. It was also very difficult to 
pick out any definite rules and laws such as one 
might need for guidance, because of the innumer- 
able conflicting opinions of the various authors 
of the Mishnah and the Gemarah. Maimonides 
therefore decided to compile a complete code of 
Jewish laws and precepts, founded on the Bible 
and Talmud. He says in the introduction to 
this work: “This work is intended to be a com- 
plete digest of the ‘verbal teachings,’ with all 
the rules and laws that have accumulated since 
the days of our teacher, Moses, down to the 
compiling of the Gemarah. I have called this 
book ‘Mishneh-Torah’ (The Second Law), so 
that after mastering the written teachings (The 
Bible), the student may proceed immediately to 
the study of this digest by means of which he 
will be able to learn the ‘verbal teachings’ (Tal- 
mud) without having to read anything besides 
these two books.” 

The “Mishneh-Torah,” or, as it is otherwise 
called, “Yad-Hachazakah” (The Strong Arm), 
is written in Hebrew of a fine literary quality. 
It is divided into fourteen parts. The first part 
is called “The Book of Knowledge” (Sepher- 
Hamada) and contains the principal dogmas of 
the Hebrew religion. In another book, Mai- | 


OUTLINE OF JEWiIsH History 69 


monides established thirteen of these dogmas, 
as follows: 

1. God is the Creator and ruler of the world. 

2. He is, without question, One. 

3. He has no corporeal substance and no hu- 
man likeness; His Being can be conceived not 
by the senses but by the mind alone. 

4. He is eternal and exists outside the limits 
of time. 

5. A Jew must worship this God alone. 

6. All the words of the Biblical prophets are 
true. 

7. Moses, the teacher and lawgiver, was the 
first and greatest of the prophets. 

8. The laws of our religion were given by 
God to Moses to be passed on to us through 
him. | 

9, This religion can never be superseded by 
any other. 

10. God knows all our thoughts and actions. 

11. He rewards those who observe His laws 
and punishes those who break them. 

12. A savior of the Jewish people will one 
day appear, and no one knows how near at hand 
that day might be. 

13. The day will come, which God shall be 
pleased to appoint, when the dead will rise 
again, 

All these dogmas of Judaism are explained in 
detail in the “Book of Knowledge” and the same 


70 Tur REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


work deals also with the moral duties they im- 
pose upon each individual. In the other por- 
tions of the “Bishneh-Torah” all the laws, rites 
and customs of Judaism are expounded, follow- 
ing a rigid order of classification, and in addition 
to these, the laws governing the family, the 
state and the community which had been made 
during the epoch of the Bible and Talmud. 


Thanks to the code of Maimonides, the Tal- 
mudic laws gained a firm hold upon the Jews. 
The “Mishneh-Torah” became the indispensable 
manual of every rabbi, judge, or chief of a 
community. At first, this great enterprise of 
Maimonides’ found many hostile critics who ac- 
cused the author of heresy, of trying to curtail 
the study of the Talmud in the schools, and 
finally of settling in too arbitrary a manner 
questions which were generally held to be de- 
batable. All these reproaches and _ criticisms 
came from the conservatives who still adhered to 
the old order and did not welcome any change. 

Not even with the compilation of his Code of 
Laws did Maimonides consider his task accom- 
plished. Two fundamental truths were the lode- 
stars of his life—that which mankind had re- 
ceived through divine revelation, and that which 
is revealed to every thinking man by the search- 
ing of his own mind. As a believer, he bowed 
before the teachings of Moses and the other 
prophets; as a thinker he estimated the doc- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 71 


trines of the Greek Aristotle and other philo- 
sophers at their true high value, and modified 
or completed their doctrines as his own convic- 
tions dictated. ‘The dream of his life was to 
effect a reconciliation between the truths of 
revelation and those of reason which he knew 
were fundamentally compatible. This stupen- 
dous task he accomplished in the work he wrote 
in Arabic, entitled “The Guide For the Per- 
plexed” (Moreh Nebuchim is its title in the 
Hebrew translation). The basic idea of the 
book is that pure religion and pure reason are 
perfectly compatible. Both admit the existence 
of One God, the cause and origin of all exist- 
ing life, and both strive to lead mankind to the 
highest degree of perfection. Since, therefore, 
the truths of faith and of reason are identical 
as to the origin and ultimate end of life, they 
cannot then differ at any other point lying be- 
tween these two termini. The book proceeds to 
the application of these fundamental principles 
to the theology of Judaism. 

Maimonides’ “Guide” is divided into three 
parts. The first is devoted to the knowledge of 
God, the second to the dogma concerning the 
Creation and prophecies, and the third to ethical 
teachings. 

Thus brilliantly did Maimonides complete the 
task which Saadiah Gaon had set himself two 
hundred and fifty years before. The works of 


T2 THE REGENERATION OF JUDAISM 


Moses-ben-Maimon are the crowning glory, both 
of the Jewish religious law and of the Hebrew 
philosophy of the Middle Ages. “The Guide 
for the Perplexed” achieved unprecedented 
fame; it was studied by Jews, Arabs and Chris- 
tians (for whom a Latin translation was made). 
Besides to the works enumerated above, Mai- 
monides wrote a number of other books on the- 
ology, logic, ethics and medicine. 


CHAPTER III 


THE JEWS IN CHRISTIAN Europe DurRING THE 
CrusADERS— (1096-1215) 


§ 14. 
The First Crusade. 
OWARDS the end of the XIth cen- 


tury, the Jewish communities in 
France, Germany and other Christian 
countries of Europe grew so rapidly 
in number and importance that their 
ranting existence seemed definitely assured. 
There was every reason to suppose that their 
development would go on unhindered until they 
reached an equal height of culture with the sis- 
ter-communities in Spain. ‘This, however, was 
not to be. For events were taking place in 
Europe which were to shake the very founda- 
tions of Jewry throughout the continent. The 
helpless nation, so far from having found peace, 
was but on the threshold of a future full of 
misery and humiliation which was to last for 
many centuries. 

At the end of the XIth century the Chris- 
tian nations of Europe joined together in a war 
73 





74 THE JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


for their common Christianity against the Mos- 
lems who were at that time masters of the Holy 
Land. The Christian subjects of Islam were 
regularly oppressed, but special persecution was 
reserved for the Christian pilgrims who came to 
Jerusalem from Europe to worship at the Holy 
Sepulchre. In the year 1095, Pope Urban II 
convoked a church council at Clermont, France, 
at which he urged the assembled representatives 
of Christendom to declare war upon the infidel 
and wrest the Holy City of Jerusalem out of 
the Arabs’ hands. The summons was answered 
by feudal princes, knights and bishops, also by 
the common people of France and Germany. 
Tens of thousands left their homes, their fields 
and estates, sewed a red cross on their cloaks 
(whence the name “Crusaders’’), and prepared 
to go and fight the infidels. At the beginning 
of the year 1096, an immense army was already 
mustered, ready to set out. Amongst them there 
were some who had gone into the war out of 
an honest desire to fight for their religion, but 
most of them were influenced by hopes of per- 
sonal gain. The knights looked forward to rich 
booty in the Moslem lands; serfs joined the war 
by way of earning their freedom which had been 
promised them as a reward, and the pious of all 
classes found inducement in the clergy’s decla- 
ration that forgiveness for all sins was to be 
bought by becoming a crusader. This motley 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 75 


army was joined by great throngs of common 
vagabonds, beggars and criminal adventurers. 
Before the leaders had time to organize the 
campaign, mobs of the crusaders overran 
France and Germany, plundering all the places 
they came to on their way to Palestine. 

As for the Jews, the soldiers of the Cross 
were not content with robbing them; they must 
be killed or baptized. “There appeared,” says 
a Jewish chronicler, “multitudes of people, sav- 
age and desperate, a horde of Frenchmen and 
Germans swarming upon us from every side. 
As they came to a city where we lived, they 
said “We have set out to avenge ourselves upon 
the Ishmaelites (Moslems) but here are Jews 
who crucified our Savior; let us be revenged on 
them first. Let the name of Israel be men- 
tioned no more, or let the Jews become like us 
and embrace our faith.’ ” 


The spring of 1096 brought death and calam- 
ity to many thousands of Jews in Europe. In 
the German towns on the banks of the Rhine, 
they suffered the worst brutalities of the savage 
and bloodthirsty hordes. The ancient community 
of Worms was the first to receive the on- 
slaught. Hundreds of Jews were stabbed to 
death by the crusaders, but as their life-blood 
flowed out of their bodies they still cried: 
“Hear, O Israel, the Lord is One.” Only a 
few of them preferred baptism to certain death. 


"6 Tuer JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


Some committed suicide, so that they might not 
fall into the enemies’ hands; women killed their 
beloved children, lest they might be forcibly 
baptized. The crusaders destroyed the Jews’ 
houses, stole their goods, tore up and trampled 
on the sacred scrolls they found in the syna- 
gogues. (May 18, 1096.) A number of Jew- 
ish residents took refuge in the palace of Alle- 
brand, bishop of Worms. He, either unwilling 
or unable to protect them, begged them for their 
own sakes, to consent to be baptized. They 
asked to be given a little time to consider their 
decision while the crusaders stood outside ready 
to lead them either to church or to the place of 
execution. When the delay they asked for 
had expired, the bishop opened the door of the 
hall where the unfortunate people had hidden, 
and found them all lying in a pool of blood: 
they had made their decision. The infuriated 
crusaders mutilated the martyrs’ corpses, then 
they slew many of the surviving Jews of Worms 
and forcibly baptized the rest. (May 25th, 
1096.) A youth named Simha Cohen, who had 
lost his father and brothers in the massacre, 
determined to avenge their murders before his 
own turn came to die. When they dragged him 
into the church and stood him before the altar, 
be snatched a dagger from under his cloak and 
stabbed the bishop’s nephew to death. The 
crowd fell upon him and tore him to pieces. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstToRy 77 


Not until the last of the crusaders had left 
Worms could the bodies of the Jewish martyrs 
be buried. ‘There were nearly eight hundred. 

Meanwhile another detachment of crusaders 
was approaching Mayence. The local Jews as- 
sembled in the vast castle belonging to the 
Bishop Ruthard, and begged him for protection 
which he promised in exchange for a certain 
sum of money. When the crusaders reached the 
castle, the Jews took up arms against them, 
expecting the bishop’s guards to come, as prom- 
ised, to their aid, but they were sorely disap- 
pointed. ‘The guards fled at the moment of 
danger and Ruthard himself, out of cowardice 
or treachery, disappeared from the castle, leav- 
ing his unfortunate protegés to the mercy of 
their butchers. Some, seeing that resistance 
would be useless, killed themselves there and 
then, and the rest met death at the hands of the 
invaders. 


The Bishop of Cologne was more humane. 
Hearing of the imminent arrival of the crusad- 
ers, he sent many Jews out of the city and gave 
them shelter in surrounding towns and villages 
in his own domains; such Jews as remained in 
Cologne hid in the houses of their Christian 
neighbors and escaped, but most of those who 
hid in the villages of the diocese were discovered 
and murdered. Everywhere Jews were dying 
like heroes for their nation and their faith, and 


78 THE JEWS IN CHRISTIAN HKUROPE 


those who were unable to resist baptism either 
returned at once to their own religion or com- 
mitted suicide to atone for their unwilling apos- 
tasy. 

From the Rhine the hordes of crusaders 
moved eastward towards the Danube, murder- 
ing the Jews in the cities of Austria and Bohe- 
mia, destroying and laying waste every place 
along their path. The crusaders themselves per- 
ished by thousands, some of hunger and the 
hardships of the long journey, some in combat 
with the natives of the countries they so bar- 
barously attacked. A new army was mobilized 
under the leadership of Duke Godfrey of 
Buoillon. After three disastrous years, having 
suffered heavy losses on their way through By- 
zantium, they at last reached the Holy Land. 
They took Jerusalem by storm on the 15th of 
July, 1099, and when they had massacred the 
Mahometans, they herded all the Jews of the 
Holy City, Talmudists as well as Karaites, into 
one synagogue, and set the building on fire. 
There was not one survivor, and all the mar- 
tyrs’ possessions were carried off as booty by 
the savage crusaders. A large portion of Pales- 
tine fell into the invaders’ hands, who called the 
conquered territory the Kingdom of Jerusalem. 

Thanks to the good emperor, Henry IV, the 
sufferings of the German Jews soon came to 
an end. Disregarding the protests of the clergy 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 79 


and the Pope, the emperor allowed all the Jews 
who had been forcibly baptized to return to 
their own faith. He also traced the massacres 
and robberies of the Jews to certain members of 
the secular and ecclesiastical nobility and pun- 
ished the guilty ones. 


§ 15. 
The Second Crusade. 


The Kingdom of Jerusalem founded by the 
crusaders endured for several decades before the 
Mahometans again began oppressing the Chris- 
tians. Then Europe began to make ready a 
new Crusade, this time under the leadership of 
the French King Louis VII and the German 
Emperor Conrad III. (1146.) 

A French monk, Bernard of Clairvaux, ex- 
horted the Christians to go direct to the Holy 
Land, but others, such as the fanatical German 
friar, Rudolph, urged them strenuously to deal 
first with the Jews in Europe, and either exter- 
minate or baptize them before proceeding to the 
defeat of the Moslems. 

In August, 1146, the Jews were again at- 
tacked in the Rhinelands. The first martyrs to 
the new crusade died in the vicinity of Treves 
and Speir; in many other places the Jews, pro- 
fiting by the bitter experience of 1096, tried to 
ward off the calamity by paying enormous sums 


80 THe Jews IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


to the feudal barons and bishops for permission 
to seek temporary shelter in their fortified cas- 
tles and palaces. ‘The emperor Conrad gave 
shelter to the Jews throughout his possessions, 
which included Nuremberg and other strong- 
holds. The archbishop Arnold of Cologne put 
the fortress of Wolkenburg at the disposal of 
the Jews and gave them permission to defend 
themselves with arms against attack. But places 
of refuge were not everywhere to be found. In 
Wurzburg the Jews were the defenceless victims 
of a riot in which about twenty of them were 
killed. Isaac-ben-Eliakim, their beloved rabbi, 
met his death upon a crusader’s sword as he 
sat poring over his holy books. 

In the spring of 1147, the riots again oc- 
curred in some districts in France. In Charan- 
ton, the Jews gathered in a courtyard, defended 
themselves for a long time, wounding and kill- 
ing many of their foes, but at last they were 
overwhelmed by a fresh detachment, rushing in 
upon them from behind. In the city of Rame- 
rupt the mob attacked the Jews on the second 
day of Shebuoth. ‘The rioters swarmed into the 
house of the famous Rabbi Jacob Tam, de- 
stroyed everything inside it and tore up his 
sacred books. 'The rabbi they dragged into a 
field where they beat him upon the head, in- 
flicting cruel injuries upon him. “You are great 
in Israel,” they said, “therefore on you we 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 81 


avenge the sufferings of our crucified Savior.” 
Just then a knight on horseback was riding 
through the field, and Rabbi Tam begged him 
for help, promising to give him a very valua- 
ble horse if he would save his life. The knight 
prevailed upon the mob to surrender their prey 
to him, saying that he would try and make a 
convert of the rabbi. By this ruse one of the 
most distinguished representatives of the Jewish 
clergy was saved from death. 

Not until the French and German crusaders 
had left could the Jews breathe again. Then 
gradually they began to leave the castles and 
fortresses where they had taken refuge, and 
those who had suffered baptism returned to 
their true faith. 


§ 16. 
The Third Crusade. 


In 1187 the Egyptian sultan, Saladin, took 
Jerusalem from the Christians and thereby put 
an end to the existence of the kingdom of Jeru- 
salem. This retaliation was met by the mobiliza- 
tion of a third crusading army in which the 
German emperor, I['rederick Barbarossa, the 
French king, Philip-Augustus, and the English 
king, Richard the Lion-Hearted, took part. 

As before in France and Germany, anti- 
Jewish riots now broke out in England, where 


82 Tue JEws IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


the Hebrew communities, reinforced by many 
refugees from the persecutions in France, had 
for many years played a very important part 
in the industrial life of the country. ‘The 
Jews of London and the other large towns were 
chiefly engaged in banking and various branches 
of commerce. ‘They held, direct from the kings, 
the right to travel, and to buy and sell in what- 
ever part of the kingdom they chose, but for 
these privileges they paid very heavy taxes. In 
the capital and in the provinces as well, many of 
them were exceedingly wealthy and lived in 
“houses of stone, like palaces.” The leading 
merchants and bankers naturally were the ob- 
ject of much public notice, and their vast pos- 
sessions aroused the greed of the kings and the 
envy of the Christians. All Jews came to be 
regarded as wealthy, whether they were or not, 
and this belief, together with the religious fren- 
zy inspired by the impending crusade, created 
highly favorable conditions for an outbreak of 
popular hatred. 

Richard I came to the throne just as prepa- 
rations for the war were going vigorously for- 
ward. On the day of his coronation, various 
delegations came to the royal palace in London 
to offer their congratulations to the new king. 
A Jewish delegation came with the rest, bring- 
ing rich gifts, but their presence offended Bald- 
win, the archbishop. He told the king that the 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstory 83 


honor of appearing in the royal presence ought 
not to be given to the infidel, nor could the 
presents of unbelievers be accepted without sin. 
Thereupon Richard ordered the Jewish delega- 
tion out of the throne-room. ‘The court attend- 
ants roughly hastened their exit, and, the news 
of the king’s action quickly spreading over the 
town, a rabble of plain citizens joined the cru- 
saders in an attack upon the London Jews, 
killing many, and devastating their homes. In 
vain the wealthy members of the unfortunate 
community barricaded themselves in their tall 
and well -walled mansions; the rioters set the 
houses on fire and all within them perished in 
the flames (1189). As in the towns of Europe 
at the time of the former religious wars, many 
Jews took their own lives in order to escape 
forcible baptism. 

After Richard’s departure for the east with 
his army, other English cities became the scene 
of outbreaks similar to the one in London. An 
appalling tragedy occurred in York during the 
anti-Jewish uprising there when a crowd of 
Jews locked themselves in one of the towers of 
the city keep. The Christians besieged their 
stronghold for six days while they from the in- 
side tried to force them off with stones; a monk 
was killed as a stone struck him in a vital spot. 
Very soon the food supplies in the tower gave 
out and the defenders were faced with the im- 


84 THE JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


possibility of carrying on. They held council as 
to what they should do, and Yomtob, their 
rabbi, said: 

“Tt is clearly the will of God that we die for 
our holy religion. Death waits behind this door, 
and you will hardly be willing to betray your 
faith in order to prolong your life on earth by 
so very little time as you will have. The Cre- 
ator gave us life; let us return it to Him with 
our own hands. Not only men of known piety, 
but whole communities have set us this example 
in ancient times and in our own day.” His 
words took effect, and, with the exception of a 
few faint-hearted ones, all the besieged decided 
to take their own lives. The head of the com- 
munity, a man of great wealth named Josce 
(one of the delegation who had gone to con- 
gratulate King Richard) first killed his beloved 
wife and then the rabbi killed him. The enemy, 
rushing into the fortress the next day, put to 
death all who survived. This event took place 
on the eve of the Great Sabbath before Pass- 
over in 1190. King Richard’s viceroy ordered © 
that the men guilty of this massacre be severely 
punished, but not one of them was ever found. 
They had fled in all directions and the noble- 
men, who had instigated the riot, made their 
escape into Scotland. During the reigns of 
Richard’s successors, the conditions of the Jews 
in England grew steadily worse. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 85 


§ 17. 


The Condition of the Jews in France and 
Germany. 


The effect of the crusades upon the condi- 
tions of the Jews of Western Europe was to 
make their social and economic hardships far 
worse than ever before. Closer connections be- 
tween East and West resulted from the move- 
ment of great masses of people from Europe 
into Asia, and Christian merchants began to 
supplant the Jews who had formerly been the 
middlemen of inter-continental commerce. With 
the growth and development of cities in Kurope, 
Christian merchants soon outnumbered the Jews 
who found themselves everywhere forced into 
petty trade. Being debarred from agricultural 
occupations, the wealthier Jews had to be- 
come lenders of money, and this commerce was 
a source of endless conflict between them and 
their borrowers, resulting in later years in un- 
told suffering for the whole of the Jewish peo- 
ple. Their social status in the Christian coun- 
tries in which they lived, declined in proportion 
to their loss of financial prestige, and the gen- 
eral upheaval brought about by the Crusades, 
leaving the popular mind in a state of mental 
chaos where every kind of fanatical religious 
fury instantly took riot, rendered the very ex- 


86 Tuer JEwS IN CHRISTIAN KUROPE 


istence of the Jews exceedingly precarious. Liv- 
ing as they did, upon a volcano of public hatred 
likely at any moment to erupt, they were in a 
state of continual dread of death and ruination. 
Outrageous rumors representing the Jews as 
monsters capable of untold evil were eagerly 
seized upon by the superstitious Christian pop- 
ulace. ‘The most terrible of these was the ac- 
cusation levied against them that they killed 
Christian children to mix their blood with the 
unleavened Passover bread and ritual wine. Mur- 
derers of Jews justified their crimes by saying 
that they acted in retaliation for Jewish murder 
of Christians committed in secret. 

One evening in the year 1711, a servant of 
the hhousehould of the Mayor of Blois, went 
down to the river to water a horse. The horse 
shied at something that he saw there and the 
servant riding home in a great fright told the 
people that the thing that had scared the horse 
was the sight of a Jew throwing a Christian 
boy into the river. Thirty of the local Jews 
were arrested upon the accusation, and the case — 
was judged on the “trial by water” which was 
one of the superstitious legal practises of the 
age. The servant was thrown into a boat full 
of water, and the fact that it did not sink was 
held to prove the Truth of his story. The Jews, 
whose guilt was thereby established were locked 
up in a wooden tower, around which faggots 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstory 87 


for a fire were piled. They were then offered 
their freedom if they would consent to be bap- 
tized, but they proudly refused. 

Thereupon, the faggots about their tower 
were kindled and all the Jews were burned 
alive (May 26th 1711). They suffered death 
with undaunted courage, singing, as if to taunt 
their murderers their hymn “Oleinu.” The rab- 
bis of Blois appointed a day of fasting in mem- 
ory of these brave martyrs. 

The French king, Philip-Augustus, one of 
the three Kuropean monarchs who led the third 
crusade, was insatiable in his thrist for money, 
and cruelly persecuted his Jewish subjects, 
using every means in his power to extort con- 
tributions from them towards the expenses of 
the war. On a certain Saturday when all the 
Jews of Paris were at prayer in the synagogue, 
he sent out an order for their arrest, and had 
all their property sealed up. ‘They collected 
the large sum of 15,000 silver marks which they 
offered to the king and then he allowed them 
to go free. A year later he accomplished a 
still more profitable stroke of business; he pub- 
lished an edict giving all Jews living on crown- 
lands three months in which to arrange for their 
dispossession. Between April and July the 
exiles-to-be could therefore arrange to take 
along or sell their movable effects; as for their 
real estate, such as houses, wine-cellars and 


88 THE JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


storehouses, these properties were all appropri- 
ated by the king (1182). The abandoned syna- 
gogues were transformed into churches. ‘The 
homeless Jews of Paris sought refuge in the 
dominions of such feudal lords as were willing 
to extend the shelter of their domains to them. 
Sixteen years afterwards, the king, being again 
short of money, revoked his edict of exile and 
allowed Jews to come once more to Paris upon 
payment of enormous taxes for the privilege of 
living and doing business there. 

The Jews of Provence, one of the southern 
provinces of France, were the only ones exempt 
from the persecution and indignities suffered 
everywhere else by the unhappy nation of Is- 
rael. The feudal barons of Provence without 
exception, treated their Jewish tenants well, and 
the Christian populace, having lived so long in 
close touch with Moorish Spain, just across 
their frontier, were less superstitious and there- 
fore more tolerant than the Frenchmen of the 
north. ‘The Provengal Jews brought much cul- 
ture into Europe, and produced a great many © 
scholars and scientists, particularly in the field 
of medicine. | 

The era of the Crusades was one of sad 
deterioration in the civil and spiritual life of 
the German Jews. This was chiefly visible in 
the tendency of the persecuted people to drift 
away from the surrounding Christians, and hud- 


OUTLINE OF JEWIsH History 89 


dle together, just as frightened sheep, in mo- 
mentary expectation of attack by wild beasts, 
will press closer against one another for mutual 
protection. ‘Thus the Jews, in continual fear 
of some outburst of popular fury against them, 
held more and more aloof from their hostile 
environment, and kept within the narrow and 
secluded confines of their racial and religious 
interests. 

Another unhappy aspect of the disastrous 
epoch through which they had passed, was their 
increased, almost slavish, dependence upon the 
goodwill of the emperors who alone seemed able 
to protect them against the unbridled passions 
of the common people. Thus, from the XIIth 
century onwards, the German Jews came to be 
looked upon as veritable serfs of the imperial 
court (Kammerknecht). The civil law did not 
protect them, but as part of the emperor’s per- 
sonal property they received the same protection 
as his other goods and chattels. No effort was 
spared to derive the greatest possible income 
from this property, and permanent “taxes for 
protection” were payable to the imperial court 
by the Jews, as well as various “extraordinary” 
fines, all of which laid a very heavy financial 
burden upon them. In addition to these, Jews 
living within the domains of feudal princes and 
city mayors were taxed for permission to estab- 
lish themselves in those places, and in every case 


90 Tuer JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


where they became the owners of real estate a 
tithe of their revenues had to be paid over for 
the benefit of the church. None of these dues 
guaranteed them against popular attack, how- 
ever, so that if they wanted protection against 
the rabble, they had to pay the authorities for 
coming to their aid. Frederick Barbarossa, for 
example, took strict measures to prevent attacks 
upon the Jews while he was away at the cru- 
sades, but for this service he received large sums 
in return which helped him towards the main- 
tenance of his great army. 


§ 18. 
Rashi and the Tossafists. 


Disaster and humiliation, however, were pow- 
erless to check the intellectual growth of the 
Jews, without which, in the words of Rabbi 
Akiba, Israel can no more live than ean a fish 
without water. Persecuted on every side, the 
Jews found their only consolation in their spir- 
itual life, in the study of their religion and 
remembrance of their glorious past. Even be- 
fore the crusades, French and German Jews 
had been widely engaged in the study of the 
Talmud, thanks, chiefly, to the efforts of Rabbi 
Gershom and the “wise men of Lorraine.” The 
year Rabbi Gershon died (1040), a man was 
born in the French city of Troyes who was to 
make Talmudic learning accessible to all who 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 91 


desired it. This was Solomon Izhaki, better 
known by the shorter name of Rashi. 

As a youth Rashi was a pupil in the schools 
of the “wise men of Lorraine.” Like the “tan- 
nai’ Rabbi Akiba of old, Rashi left his family 
after his marriage, and wandered from town to 
town, receiving the “words of God” from the 
lips of great teachers. “I studied under my 
masters,” he says, “while living in dire need of 
food and clothing and with a married man’s 
responsibilities upon my shoulders.” Only after 
long years of work during which he mastered 
the Biblical and Talmudic literatures did Rashi 
at last return to his family in Troyes. It was 
not long before the young scholar’s fame spread 
all over France and Germany. He was called 
upon to settle questions dealing with religion 
and the law, and students flocked to his school 
in Troyes. In all his expositions of the Bible 
and the Talmud, Rashi made it his first care to 
present his subjects in a way that even young 
boys could understand. But he was not content 
to achieve his clarity and simplicity only in 
his lectures; he was ambitious to make the 
study of the law as easy for future genera- 
tions as for his own. ‘Talmudic learning had 
become a matter of extreme difficulty, and an 
adequate understanding of the law was almost 
impossible to attain without the help of experi- 
enced teachers. Many years of study in vari- 


92 THE JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


ous schools were indispensable to any man who 
would call himself a well-informed Talmudist. 
Rashi’s plan was to compile a comprehensive 
written glossary for use with the Talmudic 
books. In the commentaries he adds to most of 
the treatises of which the Babylonian Talmud is 
composed, he gives brief, clear and simple ex- 
planations of all the difficult passages in the 
text, and elucidates the intricate reasoning and 
discourses of the teachers of antiquity. A short 
note of his would often remove hitherto insur- 
mountable obstacles to the understanding of 
complicated passages. With Rashi’s commen- 
tary, it became possible to study the Talmud 
without any teacher; so simple, indeed, did this 
learning become, that it was commenced even 
in the primary schools throughout Jewry. His 
contemporaries justly remarked that the Tal- 
mud without Rashi was lke a lock without a 
key. In all future editions of the Talmud, in- 
cluding those of our own time, Rashi’s com- 
mentary is printed beside the text. A com- 
mentary on the Bible explained the ancient 
texts, not according to their literal meaning but 
with reference to the commentaries and legends 
of the Talmud. Both these works of Rashi’s 
were used in all the “cheders”’ (primary 
schools). 

Rashi lived through the horrors of the first 
crusade, and in 1105 he died in Worms, leaving 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 93 


three daughters, one of whom had assisted her 
father in his work. Both she and her sisters 
married well-known Talmudists and bore sons 
who became famous for their learning. All 
Rashi’s sons-in-law and grandsons carried on 
his labors where he had left off; one of his 
daughters’ sons was the rabbi Jacob Tam, who 
so narrowly escaped death during the second 
crusade. (See § 15.) Jacob Tam, who bore 
the title of “rabbinu” (our teacher), was famous 
as the greatest authority of his time upon all 
matters pertaining to the law. He lived in the 
town of Ramerupt in France, and was the head 
of a Talmudic school which produced many 
famous rabbis. He wrote several treatises full 
of the most profound Talmudic learning, the 
best known being the “Sepher Haiashar.”’ 
Every now and then Rabbi Tam would summon 
rabbinical councils for the discussion of various 
questions concerning the welfare of the Jews, 
and decisions would be taken to ameliorate their 
condition wherever possible. One of the coun- 
cils’ rulings was that disputes between Jews 
should be taken to the rabbinical “Beth-Din” 
which gave verdicts according to Jewish law 
and custom, instead of to the judges in Chris- 
tian courts. 

The scholar-kinsmen of Rashi with their disci- 
ples were called “Tossafists,” or “those who add,” 
because they wrote their commentaries as addi- 


94, THe JEWS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE 


tions to Rashi’s. The Tossafist schools, like the 
academies of antiquity, aimed to sharpen their 
students’ wits upon the whetstone of intricate 
debate. ‘They considered all the subtleties of 
the Talmud, tracing the discussions and laws 
back to their origin, and reconciling all apparent 
contradictions. ‘The Tossafists’ additions to the 
Talmud are to be found in all the editions of 
the Babylonian work, next to the text and 
Rashi’s commentaries. 

The French and Spanish Jews, unlike their 
brethren in Spain, completely neglected the 
study of philosophy and secular learning, devot- 
ing themselves exclusively to the Talmud. Only 
in Provence where Spanish influence had al- 
ways been very strong, did the Jews occupy 
themselves with literary works of a wider appli- 
cation. Scholars of the Tibbonides family there 
translated the philosophical works of Jehuda 
Halevi, Maimonides and other thinkers from 
Arabic into Hebrew. The Kimhides, particu- 
larly David Kimhi, were noted grammarians 
and wrote commentaries on the Bible. 

Indeed the condition of the Jews in northern 
France and in Germany were most unfavor- 
able to the development of research in any 
branch of secular learning, and it was natural 
that the Hebrew scholars, living in the midst 
of suffering and hardship should bury them- 
selves in their religious literature and trust to 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstTory 95 


finding courage and consolation therein, since 
there was none to be found elsewhere. They 
varied their Talmudic research only with reli- 
gious and moral instruction. One of the Tossa- 
fists, Judah Hassid by name, wrote the “Book 
of the Pious” (Sepher Hahasidim) wherein, 
next to noble ethical teachings, many tales of 
superstition are to be found, striking fear into 
the reader’s heart (1200). The following are 
a few extracts from this work: 

“Abstain from flattery; say not one thing 
with the tongue, while in the mind you mean 
another, for tongue and mind should ever agree. 
This rule should hold for intercourse with for- 
eigners no less than with Jews. Cheat neither fel- 
low-Jew nor Gentile, for the Lord keeps watch 
over all the lowly, whatever their faith.” 

“If one should scold or abuse you, make no 
answer. Silence is the wise man’s rule, for 
he says, ‘If I speak I may regret later, but if 
I keep silent, there will be nothing to regret.’ ” 

“Let not youths and maidens meet or sport 
together (in order to avoid temptation). One 
night a man was riding under the moon and he 
saw a number of wagons filled with men and 
pulled along by other men. The rider stopped 
them and asked why they dragged the wagons 
and they answered: ‘In our life on earth we 
made merry in the company of women; now we 
atone in this manner for our sins.’ ”’ 


96 THe JEWS IN CHRISTIAN KUROPE 


Hassid’s book is full of stories of dead men, 
ghosts and devils. A popular belief, there 
recorded for the first time, tells of the dead 
rising at midnight from their graves and hold- 
ing services in empty synagogues and any liy- 
ing person seeing them thus or hearing their 
voices raised in prayer will surely die within a 
few days afterwards. 

The calamitous epoch through which the Jews 
of Western Europe passed was reflected in a 
series of penitential prayers (Selicoth), which 
were read on fast-days in all the synagogues 
amidst the tears of all the congregation. ‘The 
following lines from a Selica, written by a man 
who had been through the disasters of the sec- 
ond crusade, is a typical specimen of these 
prayers: 

“Hear, O Lord, my voice entreating Thee. 
For the stony-hearted foe is upon me; I am 
about to fall under the knives of the evil ones 
who have risen up against me. My soul goes 
in darkness under the fear of death; I am in 
dread lest my strength fail me utterly. Already 
the savage hordes are at hand; the sword gleams 
as it is about to strike me down, dealing me 
punishment for that which I have not com- 
mitted. My soul drowns in illimitable sorrow; 
the flame of torture burns within me. But my 
blood, sacrificed to the cruelty of my ruthless 
enemies, flows drop by drop into the dwelling 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRyY 97 


of Thy love, and Thou, counting each drop as 
it is shed, wilt demand full payment from him 
who puts me to this torment.” 


CHAPTER IV. 


Centuries oF MartryrpoM AND HARDSHIP 
PRECEDING THE EXPULSION OF THE 
JEWS FROM E'RANCE—1215-1394, 


§ 19. 
Pope Innocent III. 


IS a result of the crusades, the Popes 
| found themselves more powerful than 
\ g ever both in the temporal and in the 
\ erie| spiritual world. ‘The whole of West- 
dis"| ern Europe became as one kingdom 
andes the despotic rule of the head of the Cath- 
olic church who, from his seat in Rome, sent 
his orders abroad to nations and their mon- 
archs. Papal influence reached its zenith in the 
early years of the XIIth century under Inno- 
cent III. ‘This stern and unrelenting priest, 
the ruthless enemy of every manifestation of 
free thought, saw a menace to the church in the 
fact that Jews lived in the Christians’ midst, 
“infecting” them with their “infidel doctrines.” 
Since it was impossible to annihilate all Jews, 
this Pope strove to reduce them to the defence- 
less status of outcasts and pariahs. 
98 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 99 


“The Jews,’ he wrote in his messages to 
kings and princes, “are doomed to everlasting 
slavery for the crucifixion of Christ by their an- 
cestors. Like Cain, the fratricide, they must 
forever wander over the face of the earth, 
strangers to peace and joy. It is the duty of 
Christian rulers, so far from protecting them, 
to treat them as slaves and keep them apart 
from their Christian subjects, as is right for an 
inferior caste, devoid of human rights and 
scarcely to be tolerated.” Only thus could the 
rulers of Christendom sufficiently indicate the 
gulf that separated the faithful sons of the 
church from the outcast sons of the synagogue. 

The “Albigense Movement” which became 
rife throughout France at that period, was 
largely responsible for Innocent III’s implaca- 
ble enmity towards the Jews. Under the in- 
fluence of the Arab-Jewish culture which had 
travelled northward from Spain, the Christians 
of Provence began to read and interpret the 
Bible for themselves, and very soon they real- 
ized certain fundamental discrepancies in the 
Catholic dogma when viewed in the light of 
the original gospels. A new sect thereupon 
sprang into life, called the Albigenses, its ad- 
herents professing what they called pure Chris- 
tianity, wholly opposed to the creed of Rome. 
Pope Innocent III, learning of the existence 
of this heresy, persecuted the Albigenses with- 


100 MARTYRDOM IN E'RANCE 


out mercy, and even started a crusade against 
them. The Catholic armies invaded Provence, 
slew tens of thousands of the offenders and 
laid waste the entire country. ‘The Jews, who 
were regarded as the cause of the outbreak, 
suffered in consequence. After Beziéres had 
fallen into the hands of the fanatical hordes 
led by the monk Arnold, about two hundred 
Jews were found among the dead (1209). “Kull 
them all,” said Arnold to his crusaders, “and 
let God in His heaven distinguish between the 
guilty and the innocent.” 

The Inquisition, a secret ecclesiastical court, 
was established in Southern France at an early 
date. Its object was to search out and exter- 
minate all free-thinkers, both Christian and He- 
brew. Its activities were seconded by the mon- 
astic order of St. Dominic which was estab- 
lished at the same time, and whose purpose it 
was to protect the church from all manifesta- 
tions of independent opinion. ‘Thenceforward 
the Jews had no more bitter enemies than these 
friars, who persecuted and humiliated them 
without respite. 

The Pope and his army of monks strove to 
sever all relations between Jews and Christians. 
In the year 1215, Innocent III summoned a 
church council to decide upon proper measures 
against heretics and non-Christians in all coun- 
tries. Among other resolutions, a number of 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 101 


terribly humiliating Jaws were passed against 
the Jews. The Christian rulers were ordered 
to allow no Jews to occupy any public office; 
nor to allow them to. appear upon the streets 
during Passion Week preceding the Catholic 
Easter. They were further commanded to see 
that baptized Jews observed none of the laws 
of their former religion, and to levy upon all 
Jews buying houses from Christians a certain 
tax towards the support of the church. Cruel- 
est of all these measures, however, was the es- 
tablishment of the “Jewish Badge.” In view of 
the fact that in most countries the Jews did not 
differ from other people in their manner of 
dress and might therefore be easily mistaken 
for members of other races, this council ruled 
that Jews of both sexes should thenceforth wear 
garments of a special cut, or failing that, a 
special badge of some brightly colored cloth 
sewn upon their outer garment in order to dis- 
tinguish them from the rest of mankind. Later 
on, a disc of yellow material sewn on to the 
hat or cloak was made the universal badge, to 
be borne by every Jew and Jewess wherever 
they went. ‘They were thus exposed to the 
derision and scorn of all the world, and could 
get no redress for the insults they endured. 
The wearing of this badge filled the Hebrew 
people with a sense of deep indignity, and their 
misery was increased by the fact of their utter 


102 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


defencelessness. Not all the secular rulers, how- 
ever, insisted on the observance of this shameful 
enactment of the church, neither was it observed 
by all the Jews in any Christian domain. The 
proud Spanish Jews living in various Christian 
countries to which they had migrated, refused to 
wear the badge, and elsewhere the wealthy paid 
for exemption from the law. 


§ 20. 


Persecution of the Talmud and Religious 
Disputes. 


At that period the French kings were the 
most ardent adherents of the Roman church. 
The pious monarch, St. Louis, was as clay in 
the clergy’s hands, and oppressed the Jews with 
great cruelty in his endeavor to convert them 
to Christianity. Not content with persecuting 
the people themselves, he made war, assisted by 
the clergy, of course, upon the Hebrew reli- 
gion itself. Nicholas Donin, a baptized Jew 
whom his own co-religionists had ostracized, re- 
ported to Pope Gregory IX that the Talmud 
contained many passages and expressions dis- 
respectful to the Christian faith. The Pope 
thereupon ordered his bishops to make them- 
selves familiar with the text and find out 
whether Donin’s allegations were true, in which 
case the book should be publicly burnt. The 
investigation began in Paris, the capital of the 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 103 


kingdom. Some of the Parisian Jews had their 
copies of the Talmud confiscated, and the rab- 
bis were summoned to explain the text. A pub- 
lic debate took place between the informer, 
Donin, and four rabbis with Jehiel, the great 
Rabbi of Paris, at their head. ‘This event was 
held in June, 1240, in the presence of high 
officials of the court, ecclesiastics and nobles. 
Rabbi Jehiel denied Donin’s accusations, and 
asserted that the Talmud contained no blas- 
phemous opinions of any kind, and certainly no 
insults to Christianity in particular. But his 
efforts to defend it were fruitless; its fate was a 
foregone conclusion. Jewish homes were ran- 
sacked and all the countless volumes of the 
proscribed work were confiscated. When they 
had all been collected they were taken to Paris 
from every province in France. ‘Twenty-four 
wagon-loads of them were publicly burnt in one 
of the Paris squares (1242). 


The news of the destruction of the sacred 
books was received with bitter grief by the Jews 
of all countries. “A Song of Lamentation” 
telling of the burning of the Torah, was com- 
posed and sung in all the synagogues. It began 
with the following words, “Schaali serufa,’’ 
which means “Ask, ye burned in the flames, 
what is become of those who bemoan your ter- 
rible fate!” 


104 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 
The destruction of the Talmud dealt Jewish 


learning in France a severe blow. ‘The number 
of rabbinical schools began to decrease and the 
activities of the Tossafists soon ceased alto- 
gether. | 

Meanwhile the Jewish and Christian clergy 
in Aragon had also come into conflict. James 
I, the king of Aragon, which was the Christian 
portion of Spain, was a devout Catholic, and 
cherished a dream of converting all the Jews 
and Arabs in his domains to his own faith. 
The Dominicans taught Hebrew and Arabic in 
their schools, in order that the monks might be 
the better equipped to spread the gospel among 
the unbelievers. One of the Dominican mission- 
aries was Paul Christiani, a baptized Jew, who 
travelled throughout Southern France and 
Spain telling his former coreligionists how the 
Catholic religion was the only true one, and 
his sermons were filled with quotations out of 
the Bible and even out of the Talmud also, 
which he averred proved his arguments. 'The 
Dominicans found in this man a tool ready to 
their hands. ‘They decided to arrange a public 
debate between him and one of the most promi- — 
nent rabbis, expecting that, in case the Domi- 
nican carried off the victory, the Jews would 
find themselves compelled to embrace the re- 
ligion of whose superiority he had succeeded in 
convincing them. King James approved this 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstory 105 


plan, and invited the famous Rabbi Rambam 
of Gerona to take part in the debate. 

Moses-ben-Nahman, called also Nahmanides 
and Rambam (1195), was one of the most dis- 
tinguished Jewish thinkers of the XI1Ith cen- 
tury. A man of vast intellect, he was a famous 
Talmudist and was deeply versed in the entire 
range of rabbinical literature. No less famous 
for his secular learning, he was a physician and 
linguist, having a perfect command of Arabic, 
Spanish and Hebrew. Notwithstanding his 
scholarship, he was not a freethinking philo- 
sopher like his predecessor, Maimonides, but 
held the view that reason must be ever sub- 
servient to faith. In his remarkable commentary 
upon the Bible, Rambam appeared as an ad- 
herent of the “Cabala,” or the new secret teach- 
ing concerning God and the Kingdom of 
Heaven. 

This rabbi, whom the Jews regarded as a 
saint, was invited by the King of Aragon to 
meet the Dominicans in debate. Rambam ac- 
cepted the invitation, though reluctantly, and 
arrived at the appointed time at Barcelona, 
where the meeting was to take place (1263). 
He imposed one condition only, that he be al- 
lowed to speak with absolute candor, and having 
obtained the king’s consent to this, he began 
his speech with great courage and dignity.. The 
debate was held in the royal palace, in the pres- 


106 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


ence of the king and his court. Dignitaries 
of the church, knights and other eminent lay- 
men were also present. The controversy lasted 
for four days. The chief points at issue were 
the following: : 


1. Had the Messiah already come or was he 
yet to appear? 


2. Was the Messiah divine or human, God 
or man? 


8. Which of the two religions is the true one? 


Paul Christiani tried to prove that truth lay 
in the Christian creed, and quoted various pass- 
ages from the Bible and certain vague Talmudic 
references in support of his contention. Ram- 
bam, however, declared that the Messiah had 
not yet arrived, since according to the prophets’ 
predictions, he would be the bringer of peace to 
the earth and that all wars would cease at his 
advent. But, he pointed out, the reverse was 
the case; violence was rampant all over the 
world and blood flowed in fratricidal wars be- 
tween nation and nation. So resolute and fear- 
less was Rambam’s refutation of his opponent’s 
arguments, that the Jews of Barcelona were in 
dread lest he arouse the anger of the Domini- 
cans and bring disaster upon the entire Jewish 
community in the city. However, the dispute 
ended peacefully, with Rambam the victor, and 
the king was heard to say that never had he 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsrory 107 


heard a wrong cause so cleverly and ably de- 
fended. 

But the Dominicans, enraged, carried com- 
plaints before the Pope accusing Rambam’s 
utterances of defaming the Church, and the 
rabbi was compelled to leave Spain. The aged 
exile, then in his seventieth year, set out for 
Palestine, which had long allured him. He 
arrived there in 1267 and beheld with great 
sorrow the ruins of the holy city of Jerusalem, | 
devastated in the long struggle between the 
Christians and the Mahometans. 

At that period Palestine was ruled over by 
the Sultan of Egypt. Rambam tried to unite 
all the scattered Jewish communities there and 
urged them to build houses of worship and to 
open schools of their own. He even succeeded 
in gathering about him a small group of disci- 
ples, but he did not live long in the Holy 
Land. He died about 1270 and was buried 
in the city of Haifa. 


§ 21. 


Spain and France. The Struggle Between 
Religion and Science. 


In the course of the XIIIth century, the 
Christian kings of Castile and Aragon gained a 
number of victories over the Spanish Moors, 
forcing them out of the greater part of the coun- 
try. Only one small kingdom, the capital of 


108 MARTYRDOM IN F'RANCE 


which was Granada, situated in the southern- 
most portion of Spain, remained in Mahometan 
hands. ‘Thus the Catholic clergy who were the 
Jews bitterest and most relentless enemies, 
soon became as powerful in Spain as they were 
in the other European countries. 'The Church 
in Spain introduced the same humiliating laws 
for the disability of the Jews as had been passed 
in France, forbidding them to occupy public 
offices, to keep Christian servants, to build new 
synagogues, to share meals or to bathe together 
with Christians. Under threat of a heavy pen- 
alty, Jewish men and women were ordered to 
wear a distinguishing badge on their headgear. 

In actual fact, however, these laws were 
rarely observed, for at that time the Spanish 
Jews were too powerful and enlightened to sub- 
mit to such indignities. .'The rulers of the coun- 
try, on their side, were always in need of the 
services of educated Jews, and therefore paid 
little attention to the demands of the heads of 
the church. The Spanish kings often appointed — 
Jews as their ministers and advisers. For in- 
stance, during the reign of the Castilian king, 
Alfonso the Wise (1252-82), the post of Min- 
ister of Finance was held by a Jew, Meir-de- 
Malea, and by his son after him. The king’s 
personal physician was also a Jew. Being a 
great lover of astronomy and astrology, Alfonso 
often invited mathematicians and astronomers 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 109 


of various nationalities to his court. The mas- 
ter of them all was a Jew of Toledo, the famous 
astronomer Ibn-Sid, whom the king charged 
with the compilation of the celebrated astronom- 
ical calculations called the “Alfonsian Tables” 
which were used by scientists up to the time of 
the modern astronomical discoveries. In those 
years, the Jewish community of Toledo, the 
Castilian capital, was the wealthiest and most 
enlightened in all Spain. 

The spiritual life of the Jews in Christian 
Spain was as many-sided as it had been under 
the Moors. ‘The activities of the scholars and 
writers were two-fold: some devoted themselves 
exclusively to the study of the Bible, the Tal- 
mud and the complicated system of the religious 
law; others turned to secular science, religious 
philosophy and poetry. The teachings of Mai- 
monides carried all before them in the realm of 
philosophy; his works were diligently studied 
and found many imitations. The youthful phil- 
osophers were fascinated by his freedom and 
independence of thought, and in their effort to 
follow him in his reconciliation of religion with 
science, his followers came to many daring con- 
clusions. Some, interpreting the Bible in the 
spirit of scientific enquiry, asserted that the 
miracles therein described could be accounted 
for in nature; others preached that all the laws 
and rites of Judaism, aimed only at arousing 


110 MARTYRDOM IN F'RANCE 


the religious impulse in the soul and the desire 
for well-doing, and deduced the conclusion that 
a man possessed of deep piety and a high sense 
of morality could therefore dispense with all 
formal observances. The spread of free thought 
among the youthful members of their flock gave 
much anxiety to the orthodox rabbis and drove 
them to strenuous opposition of science and 
philosophy both. 

The conflict began in Southern France soon 
after Maimonides’ death. Some of the rabbis, 
led by Solomon of Montpelier, branded all stu- 
dents of philosophy im general and the works of 
Maimonides in particular, as apostates (1232). 
This action aroused the indignation of the free- 
thinkers everywhere, and a bitter struggle en- 
sued. Venomous articles were written by each 
side against the other and were disseminated 
throughout all the communities within reach. 
At last the zealots of Montpelier resorted to a 
still more unworthy course of action. They ap- 
peared before the Dominican persecutors of the 
Albigenses in Provence and said to them: “We 
would have you know that among our own peo- 
ple there are also many godless ones and here- 
tics who have been lured from the truth by the 
teachings of Maimonides, the author of impious 
philosophical works. If you are trying to exter- 
minate your own heretics, exterminate ours as 
well, and turn the books which have wrought so 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 111 


much evil in our midst.” A search for the books 
was accordingly made in the Jewish homes 
of Montpelier and all copies of the “Guide” 
and the “Book of Knowledge” found there were 
publicly burned (1233). The same was done 
with the proscribed works in Paris, where, so 
says the legend, the wood-pile on which they 
were burned was kindled with a candle brought 
from a Catholic altar. 

This unprecedented alliance between a group 
of rabbis and the fanatical Catholic monks, 
aroused the indignation of the best representa- 
tives of the Jewish clergy, and the very men 
who had committed the indiscretion were filled 
with terror when they reflected what the possi- 
ble consequences of internal religious strife 
among the Jews might be. They ceased at once 
to persecute the study of philosophy and the 
conflicting parties made a peace which lasted 
until the beginning of the XIVth century. 

In the early years of the XIVth century 
there lived in Spain two famous rabbis, Rashbo 
and Rosh. Rashbo, whose full name was Shelo- 
moh-ben-Adereth, was the Rabbi of Barcelona 
and the author of many works on the Talmud. 
In France and Spain he was considered the 
highest authority on questions of the law. Rosh, 
his collaborator, whose full name was Asher- 
ben-Gehiel, lived first in Germany as a student 
in a Tossafist school, and later in Spain where 


T12 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


he occupied the position of Rabbi and head of a 
Talmudic school in the city of Toledo. Pupils 
from all the countries of Europe flocked to this 
school. Rosh immortalized his name in rabbin- 
ical literature with a text-book of Talmudic law 
(Piske-ha-Rosh), which is used as a “key” to 
the Talmud. As a native of Germany and a 
disciple of the Tossafists, Rosh scorned secular 
science and even regarded it as a menace to reli- 
gion. Finding the study of secular science and 
philosophy very popular among the Spanish 
Jews, he joined the opponents of non-theo- 
logical education, to which party Rashbo also 
belonged. Preparations for the renewal of the 
struggle against the secular scholars were once 
more occupying the energies of the orthodox, 
and the local rabbis of Spain and Southern 
France in their district messages were once more 
reporting violations of the Jewish dogma com- 
mitted by the younger generation in occupying 
themselves with science and philosophy to the 
exclusion of Talmudic learning. 

In view of these protests, Rashbo, with the 
approval of Rosh and other rabbis, made the 
following declaration from the synagogue at 
Barcelona: “That all Jews under the age of 25 
were forbidden to read works on philosophy or 
the natural sciences. That those who interpreted 
the Bible in the spirit of philosophy were heretics, 
to be excommunicated from the synagogue in 


: 
: 
: 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 113 


this world, and doomed to everlasting tortures 
of hell in the next. That their works were to 
be burned, and of secular studies none but that 
of medicine as a trade, was to be permitted. 

This announcement was read publicly in 
many cities (1305). Well-known scholars be- 
longing to the free-thinking party loudly pro- 
tested against the rabbis’ decisions, but without 
success. A steady decrease of secular learning, 
philosophy and poetry then began in Spain, 
with corresponding increase in Talmudic learn- 
ing. 

One of the last great philosophers of that 
period was a physician named Levi-ben-Ger- 
shon, known by the abbreviated names of Ral- 
bag or Gershonides. He lived at Avignon in 
Southern France, and died in the year 13845. 
In his book “The Wars for God” (Milchamoth 
Adonai), he placed philosophy on the same 
plane as the revelations, and tried to prove the 
natural, instead of the supernatural, basis of re- 
ligion. The zealots used jestingly to say that 
the author of the “Wars for God” waged war 
against God, not for Him. This work they dis- 
approved of, but they admitted the usefulness 
of another of Ralbag’s books called ‘“Toalioth,” 
an “instructive” commentary on the Bible. 

After Rosh, the principal representative of 
Talmudic scholarship was his son, Jacob-ben- 
Asher. (Died 1340.) He compiled a new code 


114 MaArtTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


called “Turim” which contained all the laws, 
rites and customs of Judaism. Unlike Maimon- 
ides, the author of ‘“Turim” does not concern 
himself much with the fundamentals of the Jew- 
ish theology and ethics, but confines his atten- 
tion to outward observances and practical laws. 
This code, consisting of four volumes, gradually 
superseded that of Maimonides, and was used 
by the rabbis and scholars throughout Jewry 
almost until our own day. 


§ 22. 
The Cabal and the Zohar. 


As the spirit of free scientific enquiry de- 
clined amongst the Jews, its place was gradually 
taken by a curious doctrine of mysticism which, 
having its origin in obscure legends of antiquity, 
was called the Cabala (legend). The followers 
of Maimonides had interpreted religion in the 
light of science and reason, but the Cabalists 
lent their interpretation many elements proceed- 
ing from the senses and the imagination. As 
everyone knows, there is very little data in the 
Bible concerning the life of angels and spirits, 
or man’s existence in the hereafter, but these 
matters the Cabala deals with at great length, 
and as if taking for granted that legend and 
divine revelation had made them familiar to all. 
This “secret doctrine” first appeared during the 
epoch of the Talmud and was known in Baby- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 115 


lonia at the time of the gaons, but after the 
death of Maimonides it became widespread in 
Spain and France. Even Rambam in his fa- 
mous commentary, showed a tendency to inter- 
pret the verses of the Bible in the light of the 
“divine mysteries” which had been handed down 
by word of mouth from generation to genera- 
tion. 

Soon after Rambam’s death in Palestine, cop- 
ies of a sacred book called the “Zohar” (The 
Radiance), began to circulate among the Jews 
in Spain. All sorts of extraordinary rumors 
were connected with this book which purported 
to have been copied from an ancient manu- 
script found in Palestine by Rambam. It was 
supposed to have been written a thousand years 
before by Simon-ben-Johai, the great teacher 
of the Mishnah, while living in a cave. (See 
Vol. II, $50). Sent to Europe, the manuscript 
had been copied and distributed widely. The 
first scribe to copy the book was a Spanish Ca- 
balist Moses-de-Leon, who died in 1805. 'Those 
who repudiated the Cabala declared that Moses 
de Leon himself compiled the “Zohar” and 
passed it off as an ancient document, in order 
to attract attention to it. 

The “Zohar” is in old Aramean, very much 
like the Talmud, and consists of a number of 
proverbs written by Simon-ben-Johai and other 
religious teachers of the ancient world. They 


116 MARTYRDOM IN F'RANCE 


follow the text of the Pentateuch and are ar- 
ranged in order of its sub-division. Simon-ben- 
Johai is represented in the book as a saint and 
supernatural being to whom the angels re- 
vealed the profound mysteries of heaven, earth 
and the human soul, that he might communicate 
them to a few mortals whom he should select 
for the recipients of his revelations. The basic 
and commandments conceal deep mysteries, for 
idea of the “Zohar” is that the Biblical legends 
“How should the Torah be holy,” argues Simon- 
ben-Johai, “if God had no other purpose than 
merely to relate such simple stories as those of 
Hagar and Esau, Jacob and Laban? Any man 
could have invented those. But no—those 
stories are but the veil behind which lie the 
divine mysteries which only the minds of the 
elect may know.” Simon withdrew that veil. 

“The August Saint (God),” he declares, “is 
a Being clothed in the uttermost mystery, re- 
mote from the visible world, yet closely bound 
to it, for upon Him all things rest and in Him 
everything is contained. He has, and has not 
Form; inasmuch as He supports all things, He 
has it; inasmuch as He is inconceivable, He has 
none. He appeared bringing nine torches kin- 
dled with His light and the radiance shone out 
on every side. He is one with those torches; 
they are the steps upon which the August Saint 
appears; they are His images. His head is the 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 117 


All-Wisdom, each hair a different way of wis- 
dom, His countenance is mercy, etc., etc.” 
Mysterious pronouncements such as the above 
make up a large portion of the “Zohar.” Side 
by side with them are descriptive passages of 
extraordinary poetic beauty, telling of the mys- 
teries of heaven and hell, of good and evil 
spirits. The latter often find their way into the 
souls of men and arouse sinful desires therein. 
With every breach of the religious law, man de- 
livers himself further into the power of devils; 
the more faithfully he observes the law, the 
closer becomes his contact with the world of 
good angels. From time to time, the “Zohar” 
makes cryptic allusion to the “time of the Mes- 
siah” which will come “when the sixtieth or 
sixty-sixth year crosses the threshold of the six 
thousand years since the creation of the world 
(50-60-66, or 1300-6 A. D.). A terrible war 
between Edom and Ishmael (Christians and 
Mohametans) will then break out, and a third 
power will conquer both. ‘These and other pre- 
dictions in the “Zohar” led many people to ex- 
pect the advent of the Messiah at various times 
when the circumstances seemed to correspond 
with those described in the prophecies, but their 
expectations were never realized. Despite which, 
the “Zohar” became the sacred book of the Cab- 
alists, to whom it was a kind of Bible of “mys- 
terious teachings” and in after years it was an 


118 MARTYRDOM IN F'RANCE 


important factor in the development of religious 
sects amongst the Jewish people. 


§ 23. 
The Expulsion of the Jews from England. 


During the Crusades the Jews in England 
were persecuted by the Christians whose reli- 
gious emotion had been inflamed by the call to 
arms. After the wars against the infidel were 
over, the Jews still suffered at the hands of 
kings, feudal barons and the Catholic clergy. 
The secular lords regarded the Jews as their 
serfs and all their property acquired in the 
course of commercial activities, as belonging to 
their Christian masters. King John, who suc- 
ceeded Richard Lion-Heart, was always short 
of funds and replenished his treasury by extort- 
ing money from the Jews by means of threats 
and violence. In the year 1210 an enormous 
assessment tax was levied upon them. One 
’ wealthy Jew of Bristol was commanded to pay 
the king’s officer ten thousand silver marks, and 
when he protested himself unable or unwilling 
to disburse so huge a sum, the king ordered that 
he should have his teeth pulled out one by one 
until he had paid over the whole amount. 

Following the church council of 1215, the 
English clergy, in obedience to Pope Innocent 
III, joined their confreres in the other Euro- 
pean countries by taking a hand in persecuting 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HisToRY 119 


the Jews. They saw that every degrading law 
pertaining to the treatment of the unbelievers 
was rigidly enforced, and even added others to 
those passed by the council. The distinguishing 
badge took the form of a strip of colored wool 
four fingers long and two wide, sewn upon the 
breast of the cloak. No new synagogues might 
be built, and the Jews had to pay special taxes 
towards the maintenance of the churches. In 
such humiliating conditions as these, the spirit- 
ual life of the Jewish communities in England 
could not but deteriorate. Intellectual activity 
died. A great many scholars and rabbis, finding 
no place for their offices, went away to other 
European countries or to Palestine. 

Under John’s successors, the Jews were so 
cruelly oppressed that they begged for permis- 
sion to leave England altogether; their prayer, 
was, however, refused, for they were a valua- 
ble source of income to the country. An Eng- 
lish writer has remarked that the Jews of Eng- 
land at that period were subjected to all the 
persecutions their ancestors had suffered in 
Egypt, the only difference being that gold 
nuggets were required of them instead of 
bricks. 

During the reign of Edward I, the clergy 
concentrated their energies upon the conver- 
sion of all the Jews, and the king gave the 
Dominican monks permission to preach Chris- 


120 MARTYRDOM IN F'RANCE 


tianity to the infidels whom he forbade to “con- 
tradict or laugh” at his missionaries (1282). A 
Christian theologian of that period, the famous 
Duns Scotus, advised Edward to cause Jewish 
babes to be taken from their parents and 
brought up as Catholics. ‘The Archbishop of 
London, about the same time, ordered all the 
synagogues within his diocese to be closed. 

In these circumstances it became impossible 
for the Jews to live any longer in England, 
and the king had no choice but to allow them 
to go, which many of them had long wished 
to do. 

In July of the year 1290, King Edward, 
without asking the ratification of Parliament, 
published an edict expelling all the Jews from 
England. They were given until the first of 
November to dispose of their property and set- 
tle their affairs, and it was proclaimed that any 
Hebrew remaining in the kingdom after that 
date would do so at the risk of his life. The 
Jews, weary of thei long persecution, did not 
wait to be ordered twice. Before the final date 
16,500 of them had already taken ship and left 
their country never to return. (October, 1290.) 
Most of the exiles went to France, but only to 
find themselves in the midst of more persecution 


of their unhappy people. All the disasters their © 


fellow-Jews of France were destined to suffer 
during the next century, they had already ex- 


tt 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 121 


perienced, and throughout their sojourn in 
France they drained the cup of misery to the 
dregs. 
§ 24. 

The Expulsion of the Jews from France. 

The XIVth century witnessed no Hebrew 
persecution so cruel as that which was prac- 
tised in France and Germany. The French 
kings had always oppressed the Jews; some, 
like Philip-August, out of desire to get pos- 
session of their wealth, others, like St. Louis, 
out of hatred for their alien religion. King 
Philip the Fair, a man of avaricious and greedy 
character, whose reign brought his kingdom to 
ruin, brought the extortion of money from his 
subjects to a fine art. Not only did he tax 
the Jews to the point of ruination, but he often 
parted his wealthy subjects from great portions 
of their fortunes by arresting them upon all 
sorts of pretexts and pursuing them with 
threats of trouble in store for them if they did 
not accede to his demands. Not even the pro- 
ceeds of these methods of gouging money out 
of the people slated this king’s insatiable desire 
for money. At last, like the covetous man in 
the old fable, he decided to kill the goose that 
laid the golden eggs, and by expelling the Jews 
from France possess himself at one stroke of 
all their property. Accordingly in 1306 Philip 
issued his order that all the Jews were to leave 


' 122 MartTyrpoM IN FRANCE 


his kingdom within a month, leaving all their 
goods behind. They might take with them only 
the absolute essentials of clothes and food. 

When the appointed time was up, some hun- 
dred-thousand Jews set out as exiles from the 
various cities of France. All their personal 
property and real estate was seized by the King 
and afterwards sold to Christians. 

Great was the misery of the robbed and exiled 
people. For the most part they fled to the in- 
dependent provinces of Southern France and 
the towns along the Spanish border, in the de- 
sire to remain as close as possible to their 
home-land to which they hoped they might one 
day be allowed to return. ‘They were not mis- 
taken. Nine years later, Philip died, and his 
son, Louis X, succeeding him, brought the fugi- 
tives back to his kingdom, this being, so his edict 
read, “demanded by the common voice of the 
people.” ‘The exiles rushed back to their own 
land, but the homecoming brought them little 
joy (1315). 

In 1320 a new Crusade was being preached 
in France; the armies of the Cross this time 
consisted chiefly of peasants and shepherds who 
flocked to the standard of Christendom. One 
of the Crusaders, a young shepherd, had spread 
the story of how a magic dove had flown down 
to him from heaven and commanded him to 
gather together an army to fight the unbelievers. 


=. 6 eee = 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstToRyY 123 


The story gained universal credence, and thou- 
sands of peasants from Southern France rallied 
to the shepherd. The crusading forces marched 
from city to city with their banners flying, and 
as they went their numbers increased, for they 
were joined by crowds of tramps and bandits, 
bent only upon the booty they might gain in 
the war. 

As in the earlier Crusades, the Jews suffered 
the first onslaught of the Christians’ religious 
ardor, and numbers of them were slain in Ver- 
dun, Toulouse, Bordeaux and elsewhere. Some 
five hundred took refuge in the fortress of Ver- 
dun which was taken by assault, and the Jews, 
seeing the impossibility of escape met death vol- 
untarily at each other’s hands or their own. The 
governors of the cities and the royal troops 
often tried to defend the Jews, but it was a 
difficult task, for the crusaders were looked 
upon as dedicated to a holy cause and it was 
therefore almost hopeless to attempt to restrain 
them. Only when popular feeling rose against the 
_governing authorities and the upper classes, did 
the king order strong measures to be taken to 
disperse the crusaders, but small bands never- 
theless remained behind in the Spanish towns 
just over the border, and continued to make 
trouble. About 120 Jewish communities in 
France and northern Spain bore the brunt of 
this “shepherds’ crusade” (Geserath Heroim). 








124 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


The situation of the Jews in France was 
again becoming more and more precarious. 'The 
king’s permission to live in the country de- 
pended solely upon the amount of taxes they 
were able to pay for the privilege, and might 
be expected to last just as long as money was 
needed to carry on the wars in which the king- 
dom was often engaged. Debarred from the 
practise of honorable occupations, the Jews were 
forced to become lenders of money, and op- 
pressed by the enormous taxes imposed upon 
them by the kings, they, in turn, bore heavily 
upon their Christian debtors, forcing them to 
pay usurious interest upon the sums advanced. 

The French Christians, indignant against the 
usurers, made all the Jews the scapegoats of the 
few who loaned their money at extortionate 
rates, and thus it came about that the French 
rulers, by robbing the Jews for the benefit of 
the royal treasury, made them also objects of 
hatred to the rest of the population. The 
clergy contributed its share towards this vindic- 
tive end by inciting their congregations against 
the “enemies of the church.” So unbearable was 
their situation growing, that the only thing left 
for them to do was gradually to emigrate from 
the country where they were being made more 
wretched year by year. 

The exodus had already begun when King 
Charles VI published an edict expelling them 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH Husrory 125 


from France for ever (1394). “The King,” 
said the proclamation, “having heard complaints 
against the Jews’ transgressions of the holy faith 
and abusing the privileges granted them, has 
therefore decided to forbid their further sojourn 
in any province of France, in the north or in 
the south.” They were given until the 38rd of 
November to settle their affairs, collect their 
debts and sell their property. At the end of 
1394, many thousands of Jewish families left 
the kingdom the greed of whose rulers, the fana- 
ticism of whose priests, the superstitious ignor- 
ance of whose populace had reduced them to a 
state of slavery and abject disgrace. Certain 
lords of cities and wide estates wanted the Jews 
to remain in their domains, but the royal edict 
could not be disobeyed. Only in some few dis- 
tricts of Southern France did any of the perse- 
cuted people continue to live. The rest migrated 
to Germany, Italy and Spain. No Jewish com- 
munities appeared again in Northern France for 
three hundred years, when towards the end of 
the XVIIth century, Jews came back to the 
kingdom. 


§ 25. 


Germany. The Ghetto and False Accusations 
Against the Jew. 


While the Jews were suffering expulsion 
from France and England, their co-religionists 


126 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


in Germany were also being oppressed and hu- 
miliated, but they were not expelled. The con- 
dition of the German Jews after the Crusades 
presented a tragic spectacle. There were hun- 
dreds of Hebrew communities in the cities of 
Germany, Austria, Bohemia and Switzerland, 
all cut off from the life around them, for the 
Jews were deprived of contact with Christian 
society and were segregated like outcasts in their 
Ghettos. These Ghettos were to be found in 
most of the cities where Jews dwelt, and were 
formed of certain quarters of the towns or cer- 
tain streets, shut off from the rest of the city by 
gates which were locked at night. During at- 
tacks by the Christian mobs, the ghettos af- 
forded almost the only sanctuary for the perse- 
cuted Jews, and whenever it happened that 
their enemies broke through the gates, whole 
communities were wiped out at once. The ghet- 
tos were congested and stifling; each house had 
to shelter many families. The law compelling 
every Jew to wear the disgraceful badge, either 
as a yellow disk on the cloak or a hideous hat, 
peaked and horned, was rigidly enforced, and 
anybody found upon the streets without these 
distinguishing signs, was heavily fined. Most of 
the German Jews were wretchedly poor, usually 
merchants in a small way of business chiefly 
dealing in old clothes. Those who were in bet- 
ter circumstances became moneylenders. No 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 123 


more honorable occupations were open to them 
except in extremely rare instances. ‘The Chris- 
tian “guilds” of artisans did not admit them, 
and the merchants’ unions kept them out of . 
wholesale trade. ‘The emperors and lesser rul- 
ers treated them as slaves, and kept them in a 
state of penury by means of taxes and contri- 
butions continually extorted. The latter were so- 
called rewards for “protection,” though the in- 
habitants of the ghettos often found themselves 
without protection when the Christians set out 
to attack them. 

A frequent source of suffering to the Jews 
of Germany was the prevalent practise of ac- 
cusing them falsely of various deeds invented 
by superstitious mediaeval minds. The pre- 
posterous tale of kidnapping and killing Chris- 
tian children before Passover (see § 17), was 
carried to Germany from France. There was 
another rumor to the effect that the Jews were 
accustomed to take the sacramental bread sym- 
bolic of the flesh of Christ, and cutting and 
stabbing it until it flowed with blood. When- 
ever a Christian child disappeared, or when- 
ever one was found dead, enraged mobs in- 
stantly rushed into the Jewish quarter, killing 
and plundering the innocent inhabitants. Few 
were the German cities where such outbreaks 
did not repeatedly occur. 

Once it happened that five Christian broth- 


128 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


ers, children of a miller of Fuld, were found 
dead on the outskirts of the town (1235). The 
superstitious populace immediately decided that 
two Jews had done the deed and drawn the 
Christian children’s blood to save for their Pass- 
over ritual. In the attack upon the Jews of 
Fuld, thirteen men and women were killed. 
The Jews appealed for justice to the Emperor, 
Frederick II, who appointed a committee of 
learned Christians to investigate the matter. 
If they found proof that the Jews were guilty 
of the practice popularly believed to be theirs 
of using Christian blood in their Passover 
ritual, then the Emperor declared he would 
annihilate all the Jews in the country. The 
committee, having completed its investigation, 
returned the answer that they had found no 
proof of the truth of this belief, so the Em- 
peror merely imposed a heavy fine upon the 
Jews of Fuld. The indignation of the Jew- 
ish communities had, however, been thoroughly 
aroused by this baseless accusation and they 
appealed to the higher authority of the Pope, 
Innocent IV, in an effort to refute once and 
Yor all this slanderous tale. Innocent, a juster 
man than his predecessors, issued a bull to all: 
bishops, declaring the accusation to be a base 
and malicious lie (1247). The following is the 
text of his message: 

“We have heard the complaints the Jews 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HiusToRY 129 


have brought to us with tears, saying that 
wicked accusations are made against them for 
the sole purpose of inventing a pretext to rob 
them and seize their property. ‘Though the 
Scriptures say: “Thou shalt not kill,’ yet the 
Jews are falsely accused of eating the heart of 
a murdered child during the Passover. It is 
maintained that their law commands them to do 
this, whereas, in truth it strictly prohibits such 
practices. No sooner is the body of a mur- 
dered man anywhere discovered and the mur- 
derer not found, than malicious rumors charge 
the Jews with the deed. All this is simply pre- 
text to continue the merciless persecution of 
these people. Without due process at law, or 
any previous investigation, without evidence 
against the accused or confession from them, 
they are wrongfully and relentlessly deprived 
of their property, starved, cast into prison, put 
to torture and condemned to a disgraceful 
death. Thus does the lot of Jews living under 
kings and princes such as these, become more 
terrible by far than was their ancestors’ in 
Egypt under the rule of the Pharaohs. Owing 
to persecutions such as these, the Jews are 
forced to leave the places where their fathers 
have lived since the days of antiquity. 

“Since it is not our desire that the Jews be 
unjustly tormented, we command you to treat 
them with kindness and amity. Should you 


130 Marryrpom IN FRANCE 


learn of false accusations being brought against 
them, try to prevent their recurrence, and be 
careful that they be not similarly oppressed in 
future.” 

Not even the Pope’s bull helped the Jews, 
however. Year in and year out, anti-Jewish 
riots broke out in German cities at the season of 
the Passover. Sometimes the attacks were si- 
multaneous throughout a whole province. In 
most cases, the lying charges were merely a 
convenient pretext to justify the persecutions, 
the real cause of which was the Christian mer- 
chants’ and artisans’ envy of their Jewish com- 
petitors and their desire to supplant them alto- 
gether in certain cities. 


§ 26. 
The Black Death. 


The persecutions of the German Jews 
reached their worst in the XIVth century. 
“Since the beginning of the Jews’ existence in 
the world,’ says an old German writer, “they 
lived through no crueller period than the XI Vth 
century. One can only marvel that a single 
one of them remained alive in Germany after 
such massacres.” 

In the year 1348 a terrible plague, known 
as the Black Death, raged in Europe, carrying 
off hundreds of thousands with its mysterious 
infection. Whole provinces and cities were 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 131 


completely wiped out; people went mad with 
fear; the wildest superstitions took possession 
of the minds of the ignorant masses, prompting 
them to every kind of violence and crime; legal 
restraint disappeared utterly. At last a mon- 
strous rumor overswept the land to the effect 
that the Jews had poisoned the water of rivers 
and wells in order to destroy the Christians. 
The charge gained force when it was realized 
that there were fewer deaths from the disease 
amongst the former than amongst the latter, 
although the reason for this was that the Jews 
were more temperate in their habits and took 
better care of their sick. The alleged poisoners 
received ghastly punishment at the hands of 
their alleged victims. Massacres were perpe- 
trated in Aragon and in Southern France, but 
nowhere with such ferocity as in the German 
empire. In the Rhineland, in Alsace, Austria, 
Switzerland and Bohemia, where the Black 
Death was exacting a fearful toll in human life, 
Jews were massacred by the thousand. They 
were burned alive, tortured, hanged. Often 
they were sent into exile or forced to become 
Christians. In vain the Pope, then Clement VI, 
attempted to appease the murderous fury of the 
Catholics. He issued a bull in which he showed 
the outrageous falsehood of the accusation 
against the Jews, by reminding their assassins 
that they, too, were dying of the plague and 


132 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


that the same plague was wreaking its havoc 
in places where Jews had never been. Nobody 
paid any attention to his words; it was impos- 
sible to stem the tide of popular passion against 
the unfortunate enemies of Christendom. ‘The 
burgomasters and city councellors of Strass- 
bourg and Cologne interceded fer the innocent 
Jews, trying to persuade the people that the 
plague was sent by God and not brought by 
men upon mankind, but the citizens drove away 
these champions of justice. The Jews of Strass- 
bourg were dragged to a cemetery, locked up 
in a kind of barn built of wood and burned 
alive. Only a few, consenting in their despair 
to change their religion, were saved (1349). 
After vainly attempting to defend them- 
selves, the Jews of Cologne met a similar fate. 
Once more the Rhenish cities that witnessed the 
horrors of the Crusaders’ passage, resounded 
with the lamentations of Jewish victims. The 
city council of Worms decided to burn all the 
Jews alive, but they, anticipating their fate, 
set fire to their own houses and perished in the 
flames. In Frankfort and other towns their 
co-religionists followed their example. Some 
of the Mayence Jews put up armed resistance, 
killmg some two hundred Christians, but when 
they realized the futility of their effort to save 
themselves, they sought death in the same way 
as the others. Multitudes of the persecuted 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstTory 183 


race fled from the German countries into the 
neighboring land of the Poles where Jews lived 
more peacefully, protected by the kings and 
wealthy nobles. 

Suffering, humiliation and poverty darkened 
the lives of the German Jews, and weakened 
their intellectual powers; the scope of their 
mental vision shrank to the narrowness of their 
ghetto streets. Even their rabbinical learning 
degenerated until it was quite insignificant. The 
Talmudists worked on commentaries upon older 
writings, but created nothing new of their own. 
Given their circumstances, freedom of thought 
was out of the question. 

All the rites of their religion were observed 
with the utmost strictness in the home as in 
the synagogue, for these two places were the 
sole spots on earth where the persecuted and 
condemned Jew could find rest from his tribula- 
tions, and where he might feel himself a man 
once more, in possession of his soul. ‘The fam- 
ily life of the German Jews was exemplary in its 
purity, its self-sacrificing love, its temperance 
and sobriety. ‘The community was like a large 
family, united by the same aspirations and mode 
of life. Its activities were centered around 
the synagogue, in the courtyard of which the 
rabbi’s house usually stood. ‘There all matters 
concerning the community at large were dis- 
cussed and planned; and it was there, when the 


184 MARTYRDOM IN F‘RANCE 


rioters were upon them, that the members of 
the community would gather and take their 
own lives rather than fall into the hands of 
their enemies. 

_ The in-rushing mob would set fire to the syn- 
agogue, and the students within, as they gave 
up their souls, would cry their last prayer in 
ecstasy: “Hear, O Israel, our God is One.” 
The generations that followed the martyrs kept 
their memories green; their names, bearing the 
title of “Hakodesh” (holy), were inscribed in 
the memorial books of the synagogue, and were 
mentioned in touching prayers for their souls 
“who gave their lives for the holy name of the — 
Lord.” 

In the X Vth century the intensity of the 
German persecutions diminished, though from 
time to time the Catholic clergy still incited 
their congregations against the Jews. About 
the year 1450 a monk named Capistran, called 
the “scourge of Jews,” travelled about the coun- 
try stirring up popular hatred against them 
once more, and due to his influence, the ghettos 
in several towns were destroyed. Some cities 
expelled their Jews altogether. 

The literature of the German Jews from the 
XIIIth to the XVth centuries, dealt almost 
entirely with Talmudic research. The most 
famous Talmudists of this period were Rabbi 
Meir of Rothenberg (XIIth century), Rabbi 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstory 135 


Israel Isserlein of Austria and Rabbi Israel 
Bruna of Regensburg (XVth century). Lipp- 
man Milhausen, the rabbi of Prague, wrote a 
popular work called “Nizahon” (Victory) in 
1410 intended as a text book for the use of 
Jewish scholars in religious controversy with 
Christian priests. 


§ 27, 
Italy. 


During the Middle Ages, Italy was the only 
Kuropean country where Jews were not per- 
secuted en masse; and it was there that the 
first dawn of the Renaissance, the revival of 
spiritual and social progress, mitigated the 
darkness of mediaeval barbarism. The Roman 
Popes were not prophets in their own coun- 
try. Innocent III and his successors, who so 
successfully encouraged religious intolerance 
throughout all the rest of Europe, were not able 
to inoculate with this pernicious germ Italy it- 
self, then divided into independent republics 
and free commercial cities. Jews lived in all the 
Papal dominions, in the free cities of Lombardy 
and in Naples and Sicily in the South. The 
church laws concerning them were never really 
regarded even in Rome where, although the 
Jews lived in their own quarter, they were not 
otherwise kept aloof from the Christians under 
the law. Their status was that of citizens of a 


136 MartTyrpoM IN FRANCE 


special class, subject to the jursdiction of the 
Roman curia. The chiefs of their community were 
elected representatives (parnes), responsible to 
the Pope for proper payment of taxes. ‘The 
““parnes’’ were invested with the right to sum- 
mon councils, to judge cases in which their own 
people were concerned, to impose fines or ex- 
communicate the guilty. 

Economically also the Jews were better off 
in Italy than anywhere else. Their choice of 
occupations was free, so that they were not 
forced into petty trading and money-lending. 
There was no obstacle to their engaging in in- 
dustry on whatever scale they chose. In Sicily 
and the South they even went in for silk-hus- 
bandry and agriculture. ‘The Jewish mer- 
chants could not compete with the great Chris- 
tians in the principal commercial sea-ports such 
as Venice and Genoa, yet they were not inactive 
in the international commerce carried on there. 
The lack of safe and convenient ways of trans- 
port and communication opened a wide field of 
usefulness to the Jews with inland commerce 
and agriculture, and the transport of grain and 
other products; they were the usual middlemen 
between consumer and producer. The wealthy 
did make a business of lending money on in- 
terest, but in this they were but the timid fol- 
lowers of these redoubtable Italian money-lend- 
ers, the Lombards. Contemporary chroniclers 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HiuIsrory 137 


declare that the Christian usurers treated their 
Christian clients far more harshly than did the 
Jews. 

In 1430 the Florentine city authorities in- 
vited Jewish bankers to settle there if they 
would decrease their rate of interest on loans 
to 20%, because their Christian colleagues 
charged 33%. Racial antagonism on the score 
of usurious practices was therefore unknown 
in Italy, though elsewhere this had been the 
source of so much suffering. 

The Jews of Italy could boast many famous 
physicians trained in the higher medical schools 
of Padua, Salerno and other cities, where some 
of the professors were Jews also. The Chris- 
tian doctors, jealous of their Jewish confreres’ 
successes, attempted their downfall by spread- 
ing slanderous reports of malpractice among 
their Christian patients. Thereupon the Catho- 
lic priests enforced the church law prohibiting 
Christians from being treated by Jewish phy- 
sicians. In spite of this, the Jewish doctors 
enjoyed high esteem throughout the country; 
their patients included Catholic priests as well 
as laymen, and sometimes even Popes. Pope 
Boniface IX’s personal physician was a Jew 
named Manuele who practised together with 
his son Angele. These two doctors received 
a document from the Pope and the Magistrate 
of Rome, exempting them and their descendants 


138 MARTYRDOM IN FRANCE 


from payment of taxes, in return for their un- 
paid services to the poor (1399). Another 
Jewish physician named Foligne, a professor 
in the University of Padua, fell victim to the 
Black Death which he contracted while caring 
for others already ill of the terrible disease 
(1348). Jews were often appointed as court 
physicians to kings and dukes. — 

With the opening of the Renaissance period 
when art and science began to flourish through- 
out Italy, the comparatively happy condition 
of the Jews gave scope for the development of 
their intellectual gifts in many fields. Like 
their Spanish brethren, they had a number of 
free-thinkers who shared the philosophical views 
of Maimonides, among others, Jacob Anatoli, 
who translated the Arab philosophers and Hil- 
Jel Verona, the physician, who lived in the 
XIIIth century. Other free-thinkers were 
poets of talent, the best known of whom was 
Immanuel of Rome (died 1330), the friend of 
Dante. Unlike most Hebrew poets, Immanuel 
did not write religious verse but sang on the 
secular themes of love, joy and happiness, some- 
times employing his gifts to hold stupidity and 
ignorance up to ridicule. His verse is melodious 
and of extraordinary beauty. In “Hatofeth ve 
Haeden,” (Hell and Heaven), he criticizes the 
short comings of his fellows; placing those Tal- 
mudists who despised secular learning, quack 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsTory 139 


doctors and untalented writers among the dwel- 
lers in Hell, and according a place in paradise 
even to non-Jews, provided they profess mono- 
theism. 

The rabbis of later years, declared Immanuel 
a heretic and forbade the reading of his works. 


CHAPTER V 


THe Jews’ Last Century In SPAIN— 
1391-1492. 


§ 28. 


Jewish Courtiers and the Massacre in Seville. 


IRIGHT days and dark alternated in 
the lives of the Spanish Jews through- 
out the XIVth and XVth centuries. 
yie| By virtue of their intellectual culture 
de°"5| and their commercial ability, they had 
acquired great prestige in the two Spanish king- 
doms. ‘The rulers of Aragon and of Castille 
valued their talents at their true worth and in- 
vited the ablest Jews in their monarchies to 
assume important political offices. Hardly one 
of these kings but had a Jewish official at court, 
as tax-collector, minister of finance, general 
councillor, physician or scientist in some other 
branch. Such Jewish names as Benevente, Va- 
car, Abulafia, Pihon, Abarbanell, figure in the 
roster of grandees and courtiers of that period. 
These prominent and titled Jews rendered sig- 
nal service to the kingdom at large, but did very | 
little for their own people; in fact they pos- 


140 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 141 


sessed none of the patriotic virtues which had 
distinguished their predecessors in high places, 
Hasdia, Shaprut and Samuel Nagid. They fol- 
lowed the lead of the other Spanish courtiers 
and cared only to amass vast wealth and live 
luxurious lives as they did. Christian Span- 
ilards and Jewish, belonging to the upper classes, 
dressed their wives and children in silks and 
jewels and rode about the town in luxurious 
equipages. But as the Christian populace saw 
more and more Jews attaining to this degree of 
prosperity, their envy was awakened, and they 
would say to themselves: “See how rich those 
Jews are becoming; soon all of them will be 
grandees.” And the fact that the few wealthy 
ones had acquired their riches in a very short 
time, either out of legitimate profits in business 
or out of usury, drew down upon all the rest of 
their co-religionists the enmity of the common 
people, although, in truth, the vast majority of 
Jews lived very frugally and industriously in- 
deed. Taking advantage of the rising animosity 
against the Jews, certain people began to fan the 
disapprobation of the populace into a flame of 
active hatred. 

They had no more bitter enemies than the 
high nobility and the clergy, for the haughty 
Spanish aristocrats could not tolerate the pres- 
ence of aliens in race and religion in their midst, 
competing successfully with them for the highest 


142 Tuer Jews’ Last CENTURY IN SPAIN 


posts in the kingdom; and as for the clergy, most 
of whom were Dominican friars, they regarded 
the elevation of the Jews as a direct insult to the 
church. In their opinion, all Jews, being the 
enemies of the church, should be kept in all 
places in a state of slavery. 

In spite of the foes on every side of them, the 
Jewish communities in Spain, nevertheless, flour- 
ished and enjoyed considerable freedom in the 
administration of their own affairs. Castille 
alone had more than eighty communities, num- 
bering about a million in all. The most notable 
Jewish settlements were those of Toledo, Burgos 
and Seville. Rabbis and judges having power 
to try civil and criminal cases in which all par- 
ties were Jews, were the chiefs of the communi- 
ties. As in Babylonia and under the Caliphates 
of former times, the Jews of Spain were to a 
large degree self-governing, and little interfered 
with so far as their own affairs were concerned. 
Participation in the affairs of the Christian king- 
dom also fell to the share of some of the most 
influential Jews, as has been said. But the idea 
of their separateness as Jews on the one hand, 
and of their influence as Spaniards connected 
with the state administration on the other, in- 
curred the jealous dissatisfaction of the Catholic 
clergy and nobility. | 

Fernand Martinez, a fanatical priest of Se- 
ville, resolved to stir up the Christian population 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 143 


to attack the Jews openly. His sermons were 
filled with passionate denunciations of the “false 
doctrines” of Judaism, and he was tireless in 
pointing out the increasing prosperity of the Ie- 
brew communities and the peril in which the 
kingdom stood on account of it. Martinez was 
appointed to the office of assistant to the arch- 
bishop, and thereupon he circulated amongst the 
priests throughout the diocese of Seville, propa- 
ganda urging them to call upon the Catholic 
Spaniards to rise and “demolish to their very 
foundations all the synagogues wherein those 
enemies of God and of the Church, called the 
Jews, conduct the idolatrous rites of their reli- 
gion.” On the 15th day of March, 1391, he 
addressed an immense crowd gathered in a pub- 
lic square, exhorting them to violence against the 
unbelievers in their midst. The inflamed popu- 
lace immediately attacked the inoffensive com- 
munity of Seville Jews, and the riot spread with 
great rapidity. But for once the city authorities 
intervened; the outbreak was suppressed and a 
few of the ringleaders were brought to justice. 
Martinez, however, was not among them, though 
he had been the primary cause of the uprising. 
Under a cloak of pious fervor, he continued his 
anti-Jewish agitations with undiminished energy, 
and in the end attained his goal. Three months, 
later fresh riots broke out in Seville, this time 
upon so large a scale that it was found impossible 


144 Tur Jews’ Last Century In SPAIN 


to suppress them. One morning, the Catholics, as 
if by common consent, came rushing from all sec- 
tions of the city upon the Jewish quarter (Jude- 
ria) and setting fire to the buildings, they fell to 
killing and robbing all the inhabitants. (June 6, 
1391). Some four thousand Jews were mur- 
dered or taken prisoners or sold into slavery to 
Arab merchants; the rest, in order to escape 
death, allowed themselves to be baptized. Noth- 
ing was left of the ancient and wealthy com- 
munity, and such synagogues as escaped the fire 
were turned into Christian churches. 

The massacre in Seville gave the signal for 
similar outbreaks in other cities. In Toledo and 
Cordova Jews were killed by the frenzied mobs. 
Many though the martyrs were, there were also 
many faint-hearted ones who feigned to accept 
Christianity in order to save their lives. From 
Castile, the wave of anti-Semitism threatened to 
overwhelm the kingdom of Aragon also. In 
Valencia the Catholics descended upon the Jew- 
ish quarter, crying: “Martinez has come. He will 
baptize you all.” The resistance of the Jews 
still further enraged the rioters, and the com- 
munity of five thousand souls was soon in ruins. 
Some of the inhabitants perished by the sword, 
some accepted the cross, some fled. The Jews 
of Barcelona locked themselves inside the fortress 
of the city, believing themselves safe in the pro- 
tection of the local governor and other influential 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 145 


citizens, but disaster pursued them into their 
refuge, for the furious mob set fire to the fort- 
ress. The Jews saw that all hope of escape was 
over, and some slew themselves while others 
threw themselves off the tower and were in- 
stantly killed on the ground beneath. Others 
were slain by the enemy and others again turned 
from their persecuted religion for the sake of 
life. Only very few succeeded in escaping from 
the city. 

The Spanish refugees settled in the adjoining 
country of Portugal where Jewish communities 
had existed undisturbed for a long time. The 
Portuguese Jews, who were very active in the 
industrial development of their maritime king- 
dom, lived in free communities of which the 
Head Rabbi was the acknowledged chief with 
very extensive powers. Jews were very often 
appointed by the kings to such important posts 
as those of ministers or advisors. After the 
Seville massacres of 1391, many refugees from 
Spain found shelter in Portugal, and those who 
had been forcibly baptized returned to the open 
observance of their true faith. This return ren- 
dered them liable to dire punishment, but Moses 
Navarro, the chief rabbi of Portugal, who was 
also personal physician to the king, was able to 
ward off the disaster that threatened these ex- 
Catholics. This he achieved by means of show- 
ing the king two Papal edicts forbidding the 


146 Tue Jews’ Last CENTURY IN SPAIN 


forcible baptism of Jews, and in obedience to 
these, the king issued a proclamation (1392), to 
the effect that Jews who, having been forcibly 
baptised, returned to their own religion, were 
not to be molested for their action, and he or- 
dered that the Papal message on which his edict 
was based should be published all over his king- 
dom. : 

Not all the Spanish Jews fled to Portugal, 
however. Many settled in the Mahometan ter- 
ritories of northern Africa where they estab- 
lished as in the time of Maimonides, large com- 
munities. 

Among the many Jews of great eminence to 
whom the massacres of 1391 brought deep per- 
sonal suffering, was the famous philosopher 
Hasdai Crescas of Barcelona, whose son had 
died a martyr to his faith. ‘The father, in the 
grief of his bereavement, expressed his submis- 
sion to the will of God in the following humble 
words: 

“TI gave my son to God, a burnt offering. I 
accept the righteous judgment of the Lord, and 
I am consoled because He let my child die so glo- 
rious a death.” | 

His own sorrow and the hardly less personal 
grief with which he witnessed the disaster to his 
people as a whole, did not prevent Crescas from 
devoting himself to the study of theology and 
philosophy, but his experiences left their mark 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstTory 147 


upon his works. Unlike Maimonides, Crescas 
preached that faith must triumph over reason, 
not reason over faith. Of the two Mosaic com- 
mandments, “Know thy God” and “Love thy 
God with all thine heart,” he held the latter to 
be the more important. In his book “The Light 
of God” (Or Adonai), he alters the Creed as 
established by Maimonides, and enlarged it. A 
younger contemporary of Crescas’, Joseph Albo 
(died 1444), the author of a remarkable work 
called “Dogmas” (Iccarim), shared Crescas’ 
opinions with regard to the theology of Mai- 
monides, whose thirteen articles of the creed he 
condenses into three, viz., the existence of God, 
the “revelation” or divine origin of the Torah 
and reward in the hereafter. 


§ 29. 
The Marranos. 


The events of 1391 exerted a profound influ- 
ence upon the lives of those of the Spanish Jews 
who had purchased their lives with the accept- 
ance of Christianity in the disastrous year of the 
massacres. ‘These converts, who were exceed- 
ingly numerous, had thought that as soon as the 
wave of anti-Semitism passed, they would be 
allowed to return to the religion of their fathers. 
But they were mistaken. Only the baptized 
Jews who had fled abroad were able openly to 
profess their own faith; all the neo-Christians 


148 Tue Jews’ Last CenTURY IN SPAIN 
remaining in Spain, continued there strictly su- 
pervised by the Catholic clergy. However much 
in secret they might observe the Jewish law, they 
had to stay Christian to outward appearance 
and go to church. Their enforced duplicity 
caused them great unhappiness, for their apos- 
tasy earned them the title of “anussim” (slaves) 
from the Jews and “marranos” (outcasts) or 
neo-Christians, from the Spaniards. 

The Marrano population in Spain increased 
rapidly. Encouraged by their former successes, 
the Catholics invented all manner of pretexts by 
which to force more and more Jews to embrace 
Christianity, and in this they were greatly as- 
sisted by certain of the apostates who were led 
by hope of personal gain to join the ranks of 
their people’s enemies. Solomon Halevy, the 
ex-Talmudist who took the name of Paul after 
his baptism, became eventually Bishop of Bur- 
gos and tutor of the prince of Castille. Being 
a great favorite of the Pope, Paul of Burgos 
was ever anxious to please his superiors and in- 
crease the harvest of Jewish converts. By the 
written and spoken word, he was most energetic © 
in denouncing the “false doctrines of the rabbis,” 
and in demonstrating the superiority of the new 
religion. Meanwhile, Dominican monks were 
occupied in traveling all over the country, forc- 
ing their way into synagogues with crosses in 
their hands, and commanding the Jews with 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 149 


many threats, to allow themselves to be baptized. 
Crowds of Catholics would stand around the 
synagogues, ready to attack at a sign from their 
leaders. These methods of intimidation increased 
the number of Marranos by thousands. 

In the year 1412, Pope Benedict XIII in- 
vited the most prominent Spanish rabbis to 
attend a religious debate in the city of Tortosa 
at which their opponents were to be equally dis- 
tinguished representatives of the church; and 
heavy penalties for non-acceptance of this invi- 
tation ensured their presence on the day ap- 
pointed. ‘Twenty-two representatives of Jewish 
communities appeared at Tortosa, amongst them 
being scholars, physicians and philosophers of 
note. Joseph Albo, the author of the Iccarim, 
was one. The church was represented by Pope 
Benedict himself, a large number of bishops and 
one converted Jew, Joshua Lorci, whose bap- 
tized name was Geronimo de Santa-Fe. The de- 
bate began in February, 1413, and lasted over one 
year and nine months, sixty-nine sessions having 
been held in that time. Each side maintained 
the truth of its own faith, but whereas the Jews 
were obliged to speak with caution and reserve, 
the Catholics were held back by no impediments 
at all, but could insult Judaism and threaten the 
Jews to their hearts’ content. No one can tell 
what might have been the end of Benedict’s ex- 
periment, had not the ecclesiastical council then 


150 THe Jews Last Century In SPAIN 


in session at Constance deposed him and elected 
a new pope in his stead. 

The Spanish clergy strove for many years to 
make as many converts as possible amongst the 
Jews, but when at last they found their aim 
achieved, another and greater problem con- 
fronted them, for it was harder to make the new 
Catholics keep the religion than it had been to 
make them embrace it in the first place. There 
were by that time tens of thousands of Mar- 
ranos in Spain. Marriage had allied many of 
them to the noble families of Spain and they 
were closely connected at court. Marrano min- 
isters, generals and bishops won distinction for ~ 
themselves on account of their intellect and 
learning. Some of them renounced their own 
people entirely and were absorbed in Spanish 
society, but most of them observed the laws of 
Judaism in secret. Parents taught their chil- 
dren the fundamental tenets of the true faith, 
and instilled in them an ardent love for their 
presecuted race. These deceitful practices were 
known to the clergy and aroused their deep in- 
dignation. They denounced these “apostates”’ 
violently in all their sermons, and incited their 
congregations against them. One day a religious 
procession passing through the streets of Cor- 
dova found the windows of all the Marranos 
closed and devoid of the decorations with which 
good Catholics adorned the streets on such occa- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 151 


sions. A sudden rumor was spread that a girl 
in one of the Marrano houses had thrown some 
dirty water out of the window as the procession 
was going by, which splashed the image of the 
Holy Virgin. Led by a blacksmith, the infu- 
riated crowd seized burning torches and rushed 
with them into the Marranos’ houses, setting » 
them all on fire. They plundered the dwellings, 
killing all within, violating the women, and 
sparing no one, not even the children. The riot 
lasted for three days, and when it was over, an 
enormous number of Marranos had perished in 
Cordova and in neighboring cities (1473). 


§ 30. 
The Inquisition. Torquemada. 


Upon the uniting of Aragon and Castille into 
a single kingdom by the marriage of Ferdinand 
the Catholic to Isabella of Castille (1474), a 
systematic movement to destroy the Jews and 
the Marranos began throughout Spain. The 
joining of these two royal houses was expected 
to create a united and powerful kingdom, but 
both the king and the queen were entirely dom- 
inated by the clergy, and therefore introduced 
into their government the pernicious spirit of 
intolerance towards all that was not Catholic 
which animated the officials of the church, and 
which was the cause of the country’s ultimate 
decline. 


152 Tue Jews’ Last CenturRY IN SPAIN 


In her youth the pious Isabella had made a 
vow to her father confessor that when she be- 
came queen she would devote all her power to 
the eradication of the “unbeliever” throughout 
her dominions. So shortly after their marriage, 
she and her husband petitioned Rome to grant 
them permission to establish a special tribunal 
for the searching out and punishment of all 
Christians suspected of heresy and free-think- 
ing, in a word of the Marranos. The Pope 
(Sixtus IV) gave his consent and the tribunal 
thus established was called the Holy Inquisition. 
The first of these courts of religious investiga- 
tion was held at Seville in 1480; the judges 
were commanded, under pain of dire retribution, 
tion with a representative of the king. Whole- 
sale arrests of Marranos suspected of leanings 
towards Judaism then began. All Christians 
were commanded, under pain of dire retribution, 
to report every Marrano they saw not merely 
observing important Jewish laws, but even com- 
mitting such trifling observances of their aban- 
doned faith as wearing better clothes or eating 
better food on Saturday than on other days, or 
standing while at prayer with faces turned to- 
wards the east. No matter how unreliable the 
source of these reports, they were never verified, 
and very soon the prisons of Seville were 
crowded with Marranos. 'The wretched sus- 
pects were put to hideous tortures in order to 


OUTLINE oF JEWIsH History 153 


extract from them confessions of secret connec- 
tion with Judaism in which not only themselves, 
but their friends and relatives also, were impli- 
cated. A large square outside the city boundary 
was made the place of execution for prisoners con- 
victed by the Inquisition, and there, on January 
6, 1481, the first “auto-da-fe” (act of faith), 
took place in Seville attended by solemn reli- 
gious ceremonial. Six Marranos were burned 
at the stake, and some days later a second group 
was similarly put to death, after which execu- 
tions became of very common occurrence. By 
November of that year, in ten months, that is 
after the establishment of the Inquisition, some 
three hundred Marranos had been burned at the 
stake in Seville alone. Many of them met their 
death with great fortitude, having refused to 
deny their connection with Judaism. Their prop- 
erty was confiscated to the royal treasury, so 
that the extinction of the Marranos was not only 
an action to “give pleasure to the Lord” but a 
very profitable business into the bargain. The 
more wealthy heretics burned, the better filled 
was the exchequer of the greedy Ferdinand. 
The effect of the Inquisition’s brutalities upon 
the Marranos was to rouse all the spirit of cour- 
ageous defiance within them, so they turned with 
new ardor to the religion for the sake of which 
they were enduring so much suffering. Although 
many fled to northern Africa and to other coun- 


154 Tue Jews’ Last Century In SPAIN 


tries where they could openly profess their true 
faith, others, remaining in Spain, drew closer to 
the Jews, their brethren, and were ready to suf- 
fer all with them. Without thought of the dan- 
ger that hung over them, they organized clan- 
destine meetings for common prayer, celebrated 
the “seder” at Passover and observed the other 
rites of their religion. They brought up their 
children in the ideal of the same self-sacrifice 
and love for their forefathers’ faith as animated 
themselves. 

None of these happenings escaped the vigil- 
ance of the Inquisition which now began to con- 
centrate its attention upon the Jews as the chief 
instrumnts in luring Marranos away from 
Catholicism. 

Just as matters had arrived at this stage, 
Thomas Torquemada became the Grand Inqui- 
sitor for the whole of Spain (1483). This beast 
in human form was a Dominican monk and the 
queen’s confessor, and he it was who introduced 
into the procedure of the Inquisition the mon- 
strous and frightful tortures that became a sym- 
bol of horror not only in his own generation 
but for all time. His “Constitution of the In-— 
quisition” was in reality but a trap laid with 
consummate craft for the apprehension of here- 
tics; no one caught in it ever came out alive. 
Wherever evidence or witnesses were lacking to 
convict the suspect, his fate was put to the test 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 155 


of his endurance under diabolical torture, under 
which he could usually be made to confess what- 
ever the inquisitor wanted to make him confess. 
Often too, in order to save himself from further 
unendurable agonies, the unfortunate Marrano 
would implicate others who were suspected of 
sharing his own opinions. Each session of the 
tribunal, therefore, inaugurated a new period of 
raids, investigations, arrests and trials. 

Many other cities besides Seville had their 
own Inquisition tribunals. In Aragon the chief 
inquisitor was the priest Arbues, who, following 
the example of 'Torquemada, inflicted such atro- 
cious torture upon the Marranos in Saragossa 
and its environs, that in the end he paid for his 
crimes with his own life. A small company of 
rich and influential Marranos decided that the 
brutal inquisitor should be done away with, and 
accordingly three of them lay in wait for him at 
daybreak one morning when they knew he would 
go into his church alone to officiate at the early 
mass. As he knelt at the altar they rushed for- 
ward and stabbed him to death (1485). The 
only result this act of retribution had was to 
strengthen the power of the Inquisition. After 
the execution of the conspirators, which was 
done in the most inhuman manner, the arrests of 
Marranos increased daily. “All over Spain and 
her islands,” says Isaac Arama, a preacher of 
that time, “smoke rises to the sky from the 


156 Tue Jews’ Last Century In SPAIN 


wood-piles on which the suspect Jews are being 
burned. One-third of the Marranos have per- 
ished already; one-third have fled, and wander 
as fugitives from one place to another; and one- 
third lives on in dire fear and trembling.” 

Torquemada did not consider his task accom- 
plished with the mere burning of the Marranos; 
for he found that the survivors could not be 
inspired with due love for Christianity. He 
thereupon sought to show Ferdinand and Isa- 
bella that it was the Jews who lay at the root 
of the evil, for they resorted to every means in 
their power to make the Marranos renounce the 
church they had once espoused. By order of the 
authorities, the strictest watch was kept to pre- 
vent contact between Jews and Marranos. Cer- 
tain special restrictions were being invented 
meanwhile for the further disability of the for- 
mer, and the consequences of the new legislation 
were terrible indeed. 


§ 31. 


The Expulsion of the Jews From Spain and 
Portugal. 


A. desperate war was then in progress be- 
tween Spain and the Moorish kingdom which 
still survived in the south of the Pyrenean pe- 
ninsula. Ferdinand and Isabella had deter- 
mined to uproot the last trace of Arab domina- 
tion in Spain, and bring the whole country 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 157 


finally under Christian domination, and they 
achieved this ambition at the beginning of 1492 
when their armies took Granada, the Moorish 
capital, by storm. Wild celebrations followed 
this victory; the Christian realm of Spain was 
jubilant at the thought of supplanting once and 
for all the power of Islam in their land, though 
it had taken eight hundred to accomplish. Tor- 
quemada was quick to take advantage of the 
popular state of mind by turning the trium- 
phant spirit of the masses against the Jews 
whom his inhuman cruelty never ceased to pur- 
sue. They, he pointed out to the king and 
queen, were no less harmful to the kingdom than 
the Moors, nor could their presence amongst 
Christians fail to work evil, especially in the 
case of the Marranos who were an easy prey to 
temptation. Lastly, he argued, these most Cath- 
olic rulers could find no better expression of 
their gratitude to God for their conquest of the 
Moors, than by ridding Spain of these other in- 
fidels as well. The pious couple were so deeply 
impressed with Torquemada’s array of argu- 
ments that before leaving Granada they pub- 
lished an edict giving the Jews four months in 
which to depart from Spain unless they con- 
sented to be baptized. (March 31, 1492.) The 
exiles might take away with them all their prop- 
erty except precious metals and stones which 
could not, by law, be taken out of the country. 


158 Tue Jews’ Last CENTURY IN SPAIN 


This unforeseen proclamation threw the Jews 
into great distress, and their most influential 
men decided to risk carrying a petition to the 
king, begging him to revoke his order. 

There lived in Spain at that time a certain 
Jewish scholar and dignitary, named Don Isaac 
Abarbanell (1437-1509), whose family claimed 
direct descent from King David. His youth 
had been spent in Lisbon where the Jews en- 
joyed greater tranquility than in Spain, and 
there his distinguished theological and secular 
attainments won him a place of eminence in 
Jewish as well as in Christian society. A scholar 
of parts, a philosopher and an admirable theo- 
logian, the charm of his personality made him 
welcome and sought after by all. Alfonso V, 
the king of Portugal, made him supervisor of 
the state revenues, but when this king died, 
Abarbanel’s enemies at the court rendered his 
position there untenable, and he was forced to 
leave for Spain. When he settled in Castille, 
the attention of Ferdinand and Isabella was 
soon drawn to him, for they stood in dire need 
of a minister of special ability, capable of so 
increasing the revenues of state that the country 
might not fall mto ruin during the long war 
with the Moors. Bitter necessity drove the king 
and queen to disregard the law restricting the 
appointment of any Jew to public office, and 
Arbarbanell was made administrator of the ex- © 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsrory 159 


chequer. He continued in this post for eight 
years and served his masters well; yet not even 
he, for all his power and influence, was able to 
avert the crushing blow which the edict of 1492 
dealt his fellow-Jews. 

No sooner was the order of expulsion made 
public than he, together with the most respected 
and noted representatives of Spanish Jewry, 
hastened to appear before the rulers and implore 
them with tears to reverse their decision. Un- 
aware of the underlying motive of the edict 
which was rather a plan to obtain possession 
of the exiles’ wealth than to acquire the favor- 
able notice of heaven, the delegates offered a 
ransom of thirty thousand ducats in exchange 
for an act of revocation, and Ferdinand showed 
a marked disposition to yield. At the crucial 
moment, however, Torquemada, the Grand In- 
quisitor, rushed into the audience-chamber hold- 
ing a crucifix aloft, and crying “Judas sold 
Christ for thirty pieces of silver. You would 
sell Him for thirty thousand. Here He is. Take 
Him and sell Him.” With these words he flung 
the crucifix down before the king and queen 
and rushed from the palace. This scene made 
a profound impression, especially upon Isabella, 
and the offer of the Jewish petitioners was re- 
fused irrevocably. At the end of April, heralds 
were sent out all over the country announcing 
in the name of the king that the Jews had until 


160 Tue Jews’ Last CENTURY IN SPAIN 


July to settle their affairs and leave the pre- 
cincts of the kingdom; after which date their 
presence would render them liable to capital 
punishment unless they would be baptized into 
the church. 

The persecuted people found themselves faced 
with a terrible situation. As far back as the 
time of the Romans, long before Christianity 
had appeared upon the earth, their ancestors 
had lived in Spain, and the country had be- 
come the beloved homeland of hundreds of thou- 
sands of the descendants of those early settlers. 
The sudden expulsion meant total ruin, for their 
time was too short to dispose profitably of their 
possessions. ‘They were forced almost to give 
away their property; a beautiful house was ex- 
changed for a donkey, a flourishing vineyard 
for a few yards of cloth. Most of the houses 
were neither sold or bartered away, but simply 
left. And all the while, the Dominican monks 
tried to prey upon the exiles’ despair to make 
them save themselves by deserting their religion. 
Very few succumbed to these alluring offers; al- 
most the entire Hebrew population preferred to 
sacrifice all for the sake of their holy faith. On 
the ninth day of Ab, ever to be remembered as 
the anniversary day of the destruction of the © 
temple in Jerusalem of old, the Jews left Spain. 
(August 2, 1492.) There were some three hun- 
dred thousand, all told, young men and women, 





OUTLINE oF JEwIsH Hisrory 161 


with their children and their old people. Before 
they left, they paid a last visit to the graves of 
their forebears which they would never see 
again, and for three days and three nights they 
lay prostrate upon that consecrated ground, wa- 
tering it with their tears. The sight of such 
heartrending woe made even the Christians 
weep. Many of the exiles took with them head- 
stones from their family graves for remem- 
brance, or secretly gave them for safe-keeping 
to Marranos whom they knew and whom, with 
grief, they were leaving behind in the country 
of the Inquisition. 

The hapless people went blindly wherever 
their weary feet led them; some took ship for 
Italy, Turkey and northern Africa. Abarbanell, 
with some others, sailed for Naples. A large 
number crossed into Portugal. The long jour- 
ney was fraught with indescribable suffering; 
starvation, pestilence and death followed the 
wanderers into exile. 

With the merciless expulsion of three hundred 
thousand educated and industrious citizens, 
Spain achieved uniformity of religion within its 
borders, but at the cost of its decline as a Kuro- 
pean power. With the Jews there passed out 
of the kingdom a hardworking and enlightened 
element which had greatly contributed towards 
the development of its resources. Militant 
knights and fanatical monks became masters of 


162 THe Jews’ Last CENTURY IN SPAIN 


the situation, and in the course of time their 
activities brought the country to the verge of 
ruin. 

When the Spanish exiles appeared in Portu- 
gal, to the number of over a hundred thousand, 
the king gave them permission to remain there 
temporarily, but when the term he had set them 
expired, they were all forced to leave. Young 
children were taken from their parents and bap- 
tized, adults were sold into slavery. A period 
of persecution lasting over five years ended in 
the final expulsion of all the Portuguese Jews 
also (1498). The exiles went to northern Africa, 
to Italy and to Turkey, as their predecessors 
from Spain had done. Among the fugitives 
was Abraham Zacuto, author of the chronicle 
“Juchasin.” Not all of them reached their des- 
tination; many perished on the way from hun- 
ger, disease and the hardships of travel. Others, 
crossing the sea, were captured by pirates and 
sold into slavery. In a few years, all the pros- 
perous Jewish communities of the Pyrenean 
peninsula had completely disappeared, and the 
remnants of the Sephardim, as the Jews of 
Spain and Portugal were called, were scattered — 
over Europe, Asia and Africa. 





CHAPTER VI 


Tuer JEws IN PoLAND AND Russta— 
XlItrs-XVrH CENTURY. 


§ 32. 
The Influx of Jews Into Poland. 


HE great mass of Jews fleeing from 
persecution in Western Europe during 
\\ @e,i| the Middle Ages, found refuge in 
"| Poland and Lithuania, on the banks of 
B=) the Vistula and the Niemen. They 
came in vast numbers from the neighboring 
country of Bohemia after the havoc wrought 
amongst them by the earliest crusaders (1098) 
and the Polish princes welcomed them gladly, 
for both Jews and Germans enjoyed high re- 
pute in the development of industry, trade and 
commerce. Mechislav the Old (1173) strictly 
forbade violence directed against the Jews, and 
appointed certain of them as supervisors of the 
mint, both in Great and Little Poland. Some 
of the coins of that period have come down to 
us, and the names of the princes are engraved 
upon them in Hebrew characters. At that time 
there were no men of learning amongst the 
163 





164 Tur JEws IN POLAND AND Russia 


Polish Jews, but scholars would be invited from 
time to time into the country, probably from 
Germany. The foreigners occupied positions as 
rabbis, teachers in the elementary schools and 
cantors in synagogues. On the other hand, 
Jews from the Slavic countries went abroad to 
satisfy their eagerness for study and attended 
foreign schools. 

The first Polish ruler to enact special legis- 
lation for the security of the Jews was Boleslav 
of Kalish. In the year 1246, with the consent 
of his high officials, he published an edict defin- 
ing the rights of the Jews in Great Poland with 
the object of protecting them from the tyran- 
nical treatment they suffered at the hands of 
the Christians. ‘The edict consisted of thirty- 
seven articles, the first of which was to the effect 
that in all law-suits, testimony of a Christian 
witness against a Jew was to be accepted 
only upon corroboration by another witness, 
a Jew. ‘The general city courts were debarred 
from trying Jews, this being’ reserved for 
the prince in person, or for judges he spe- 
cially appointed. A Christian murdering or 
wounding a Jew was to be tried in the prince’s 
own court. ‘The person and property of a Jew 
were declared inviolable. Kidnapping of Jew- 
ish children for the purpose of converting them 
to Christianity was punishable by law. The 
accusation of Jews in the use of Christian blood 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH History 165 


for ritual, was prohibited, since a papal edict 
had declared the untruth of the charge. Should, 
however, such accusation be brought, it was to 
be proven by the testimony of six witnesses, 
three Christian and three Jewish, and if proven, 
the guilty Jew was to be condemned to death; 
if not, the Christian informant was to pay the 
same penalty. All these rights and privileges, 
the edict proclaimed, were to be granted to the 
Jews “for all time.” 

This protection accorded to the Jews by the 
Polish princes displeased the Catholic clergy 
who were under instructions from Rome to op- 
press and humiliate the Jews wherever they 
could. An ecclesiastical council in Breslau 
(1266) decided that the proximity of Jews was 
particularly dangerous to the Christians in 
Poland where the people had but recently been 
converted to Catholicism. The council there- 
fore ruled that in all cities, the Jews should live 
apart from the Christians, in a separate quar- 
ter, surrounded by a wall or trench. It was 
further provided that they should be made to 
shut themselves inside their houses whenever a 
religious procession was passing their streets; 
that they should have no more than one syna- 
gogue in each city; that “in order to distinguish 
them from Christians” they should be made to 
wear a special headgear, in the form of a horn- 
shaped hat, and whosoever should be seen in the 


166 THe JEws In POLAND AND RwssIa 


street without it, would be lable to punishment 
according to the customs of the country. Chris- 
tians were forbidden to eat or drink with Jews, 
dancing and merrymaking together at weddings 
or other festivities was also forbidden. Neither 
might Christians buy meat or other foodstuffs 
from Jews lest, in some guileful manner, the 
vendors should seek to poison them. Rulings 
made by the church in former times were re- 
iterated, viz., forbidding Jews to keep Christian 
servants, nurses or wet-nurses; and debarring 
them from office as tax-collectors or holders of 
any other public charge. 

Had these cruel, church-made laws been put 
into effect, the life of the Polish Jews would 
have been the hell that their coreligionists in 
Germany had endured, but fortunately the secu- 
lar princes of that time, as well as most of the 
populace, paid no attention to the recommenda- 
tions of the fanatical priests, and the Jews lived 
on in peace and friendship with their Christian 
neighbors. | 


§ 33. 


Casimir the Great—1333-1370. 


This king made strenuous efforts to raise the 
standards of social and political life within his 
kingdom, and to ameliorate the condition of all 
classes, even the peasants. By his care for these 
latter he came to be known as the “peasants’ 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 167 


king” and it was said of him that when he came, 
Poland was built of wood, and when he went 
she was built of stone, which meant that many 
stone structures had been raised where only 
wooden ones had been before. So just a king 
as Casimir could not but treat with great con- 
sideration his Jewish subjects whom he knew to 
be most valuable in the development of com- 
merce and industry. In the second year of his 
reign, Casimir, in Cracow, his capital, ratified 
the “Charter of Rights” established by Boleslav 
of Kalish, and declared it effective in all the 
Polish provinces. Later on he supplemented 
the edict with new laws whose purpose was to 
regulate the relations between Jews and other 
sections of the population in a spirit of justice 
and mutual benefit. The Jews were authorized 
to settle in any city or town they chose, to own 
land and to lease estates from the nobility. Casi- 
mir was also careful to preserve the good order 
and prosperity of the Jewish communities, and 
with regard to their treatment under the law, 
local judges had to try cases in which Jews 
only were concerned with the aid of rabbis and 
elders of the communities. The process-server 
was often the attendant of the local “school” 
or synagogue. This arrangement formed the 
nucleus of the Kahal self-government, granted 
when a Jewish community was founded in Lvof 


(Lemberg), the capital of Red Russia, or Gali- 


168 Tuer Jews In POLAND AND RUSSIA 


cia, which province Casimir had annexed to 
Poland. In 1356 he gave the Jews of Lvof 
the same right of trial “according to their own 
laws” as belonged to the Ruthenians, Armenians 
and Tartars living in those parts. 

A legend referred to in the Polish chronicles, 
explains how Casimir’s indulgence towards the 
Jews was inspired by his love for a beautiful 
Jewess named Esther. So infatuated did the 
king become with the lovely face of this tailor’s 
daughter, that he took her to live in his palace 
near Cracow. She bore Casimir two daughters 
whom she brought up in the Jewish religion, and 
two sons, Pelka and Nemir, who were baptized . 
as Christians, and became the progenitors of sev- 
eral distinguished Polish families. Esther was 
killed in anti-Jewish riots instigated by Ludwig 
of Hungary, who succeeded Casimir in 1870. 

During the reign of this king (1370-1382), a 
spiritual son of the Catholic West, the Polish 
Jews saw themselves about to lose all the rights 
that had been given them by his predecessor. 
Ludwig even went so far as to threaten to expel 
them all from his kingdom unless they changed 
their religion. His reign was not destined to 
last long, however, and in 1382 his daughter 
and heiress, Hedwiga, married Yaghello, Prince 
of Lithuania, who thus became king of the 
united Polish and Lihtuanian dominions (1386). 

The XIVth century saw the transition of 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH HiusToryY 169 


Lithuania from heathenism to Christianity. 
Jews had been in the country for a great many 
years, and at the beginning of the X Vth cen- 
tury had five communities, in Brest, Grodno, 
Troky, Lutzk and Vladimir. The grand duke 
Vitovt, who ruled Lithuania sometimes inde- 
pendently, sometimes as viceroy of his cousin 
Yaghello, always protected the Jews. In 1388 
he published an edict concerning the Jews of 
Brest and other Lithuanian cities, which closely 
followed these of Boleslav and Casimir. Ac- 
cording to Vitovt’s charter, their status was 
that of free citizens, living under the immediate 
protection of the grand duke and the higher 
local authorities. Their communities were inde- 
pendent and self-governing in all matters per- 
taining to the community life. 

The Jews of Lithuania, unlike their western 
brethren, engaged not only in commerce and 
industry, but in agriculture as well. The rich 
Jews would hire from the grand dukes the 
privilege of collecting the taxes levied on the 
sale of goods and liquors by the tenants. They 
also owned and rented landed estates. 


§ 34. 


The Jews Under the Yaghellons. 
XVth Century. 
King Vladislav Yaghello, founder of the 
Yaghellone dynasty, was completely under the 


170 THe JEws In PoLAND AND RuvussIA 


domination of the Catholic clergy, whose enmity 
towards the Jews was fierce and implacable. It 
was in his reign that superstitious accusations 
against the Hebrew people first began to spread 
through Poland. In Posen they were charged 
with persuading a poor Christian woman to 
steal three sacramental loaves from the Domini- 
can church which they afterwards cut up and 
threw into a ditch. The rumor flew abroad that 
the loaves bled, and that miraculous occurrences 
were seen near the spot where the sacrilege had 
been committed. The Bishop of Posen, when 
the story came to his ears, held the Jews re- 
sponsible, and condemned the Christian woman, 
the rabbi of Posen and thirteen Jewish elders, 
to death at the stake. They were bound to pil- 
lars and burned by slow fire (1399). 

Under Casimir IV Yaghellon (1447-1492), 
the Jews were treated less harshly. A great fire 
broke out in Posen while the king was on a visit 
there after his coronation, that almost destroyed 
the city, and the original copy of the first Casi- 
mir’s edict concerning the Jews was consumed 
in the flames. A delegation of Jews then ap- 
peared before Casimir IV to beg him to restore 
and ratify their rights as set forth in the lost 
charter. This request the king willingly granted. 
“We desire,” he said in a new edict, “that the 
Jews whom we thus take under our special pro- 
tection on account of the benefit their presence 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 171 


in our kingdom affords to ourself and our treas- 
ury, feel consoled during our reign for all they 
suffered before.” 

He confirmed all the rights and privileges 
they had enjoyed in former years, such as choos- 
ing their places of residence and engaging in 
commercial enterprises, legal autonomy, invio- 
lability of person and property, protection 
against false accusation and attack. The new 
edict enraged the ecclesiastical party, and Oles- 
nitzki, archbishop of Cracow, peremptorily or- 
dered the king to revoke it immediately. After 
a long struggle, Casimir had to submit, and in 
1454 many of the rights of the Jews were with- 
drawn as “contrary to divine (or church) law 
as well as to the laws of the land.” 

In the reign of Jan-Albrecht, Casimir IV’s 
successor, a special quarter in the Polish capi- 
tal was set aside for the residence of the Jews. 
The restricted area was known as the Ghetto. 
In the year 1494 the greater part of Cracow 
was destroyed by fire, and in the general panic, 
many Jewish homes were plundered by mobs, 
and the king then ordered all the Jews whose 
houses were scattered over the city, to remove 
into a suburb of Cracow called Kasimerzh, and 
live there in future, apart from the Christian 
population. In course of time, this suburb be- 
came a Jewish town which for several centuries 
remained detached from the Christian city it 


172 Tue Jews In PoLAND AND RUSSIA 


adjoined, the only contact between them being 
for purposes of commerce. 

While the segregation of the Jews was being 
accomplished in Poland, an era of oppression 
opened for the persecuted race in Luthuania as 
well. The grand-duke Alexander, brother of 
Jan-Albrecht, and his viceroy, published an 
edict without warning in the year 1495 expelling 
all Jews from the country. Nobody knows 
what prompted this cruel action, whether the 
influence of the clergy who had received news 
of the expulsion from Spain, or whether the 
king and his chief officers desired to seize the 
exiles’ houses and estates for themselves. At 
any rate, all the real estate they had owned 
in Grodno, Brest, Lutzk and Troky was de- 
clared thenceforth to belong to the king, and 
part of it was distributed amongst various 
Christian officials. With the permission of Jan- 
Albrecht, the Lithuanian exiles settled in Pol- 
ish cities close to the borders of their former 
country. Alexander, succeeding his brother as 
King of Poland some years later (1501), gave 
them leave to return to Lithuania and settle in 
the places from which he had expelled them. 
Their houses, estates, synagogues and ceme- 
teries were all restored to them. 

By the XVIth century the Jews of Poland 
had become an indispensable factor in the social 
and economic life of the country. The govern- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 173 


ment realized that if the kingdom served them 
they, in return, served it equally, being not only 
useful, but necessary to its welfare. As a com- 
mercial, city-dwelling section of the popula- 
tion, they occupied a position between the peas- 
ant-farmers and the nobleman land-owners. 


§ 34a. 


The Jews in Muscovite Russia. 

While the number of Jews in Poland con- 
stantly increased during the Middle Ages owing 
to the influx of immigration from the West, the 
neighboring kingdom of Russia had been almost 
closed to them. 

Tartars had subjugated the country in the 
XIIIth century, and since then nothing had 
been heard about the Jewish communities there. 
Jews and Karaites, descendants of the earliest 
settlers (see § 5), lived only on the southern 
borders, on the shores of the Black Sea and in 
the Crimea. Under the Tartar Khans in the 
Crimea, they enjoyed considerable freedom, 
competing in commerce with the Greeks and 
Genoese, whose model industrial colonies had 
been established there for many years. 

The presence of Jews in Muscovite Russia 
is not recorded until the second half of the 
XVth century, when, united under the rule of 
the Grand Duke Ivan III, that country began 
to make its way into the family of nations. One 


174 ‘Tue Jews In PoLanpdD AND RvSSIA 


by one Jewish settlers began to appear, coming 
from the Crimea, from Lithuania and from 
Western Europe. ‘The name of one of these 
immigrants is closely associated with an impor- 
tant event in Russian history. In the year 
1470, the native chroniclers tell, a Jewish scholar 
named Scharia came to Novgorod from Kieff, 
followed by a few of his co-religionists from 
Lithuania. Scharia became the close friend of 
certain representatives of the orthodox Christian 
clergy and converted them to Judaism. Among 
his converts were two Novgorod priests, Denis 
and Alexius, and in 1480 these men arrived in 
Moscow where they converted many orthodox 
Russians to their adopted religion. The dan- 
gerous growth of “Jewish heresy” attracted the 
alarmed attention of Gennadius, the archbishop 
of Novgorod, who set on foot the most ener- 
getic measures for eradicating it. In Moscow, 
however, the struggle presented great difficul- 
ties, but by perseverance and zeal it was finally 
exposed and uprooted. A church council held 
in 1504 issued a ruling which was approved by © 
Ivan IIT that the chief apostates should be 
burnt at the stake and the others sent to prisons 
or monasteries. ‘Thus the “Jewish heresy” came 
to an end. 

This movement coincided with another event 
in Muscovy. A certain Master Leon, who had 
come to Moscow from Venice, became court 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 175 


physician to the Grand Duke Ivan III. Early 
in 1490 Ivan’s eldest son fell dangerously ill 
and when the father asked Leon whether he 
would recover, the physician, in an unguarded 
moment, answered: “I shall not fail to cure your 
son; if I do you may have me put to death.” 
Soon afterwards the patient died, and at the ex- 
piration of the forty days of mourning, Ivan 
ordered Leon to be beheaded for having allowed 
his son to die. ‘The execution took place in a 
square in Moscow in the presence of many on- 
lookers. 

Both Scharia, the theologian, and Leon, the 
physician, were popularly regarded as necro- 
mancers, and the “Jewish heresy” had struck 
such fear into the hearts of the Muscovite grand 
dukes that it was not until many years later 
that they would admit any more Jews into their 
dominions. 


MODERN TIMES 
§ 35. 


Introduction. 


The expulsion of the Jews from Spain 
brought about important changes in the life of 
the Jewish people, changes closely connected 
with the great events occurring at the same time 
in the life of the nations of Europe, and form- 
ing the dividing line between the Middle Ages 
and the Modern Epoch. With the capture of 
Constantinople in 1458, the 'Turks destroyed the 
Byzantine Empire and established Mohametan 
dominion in the Balkan peninsula and along 
the Asiatic shore of the Mediterranean. Guten- 
berg, in Germany, had invented the art of print- 
ing, through which all nations received great 
stimulus in their intellectual development. In 
the very year of the Jewish expulsion from 


Spain (1492), Columbus had discovered a new 


portion of the globe and called it America. 


Luther proclaimed his Reformation in Germany _ 


in 1517 and millions of the Christians of West- 
ern Europe renounced their allegiance to the 
Catholic Church in favor of a creed that carried 


176 


ee 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 1 fy 


them back much nearer to the original religion 
of Christ. 

All these changes profoundly affected the 
fate of the Jews. Most of the exiles from Spain 
and Portugal, “Sephardim,” as they were called, 
settled in European and Asiatic Turkey. In 
the Middle Ages their forefathers had migrated 
to Spain from the Arab East, and now in the 
XVIth century they returned from Spain to 
the Turkish East where lay their ancient home- 
land, Palestine. Only a few of them stayed be- 
hind in Europe, chiefly in Italy and Holland. 

Then the “Ashkenasim,” or German and Pol- 
ish Jews, came to the forefront of Jewish his- 
tory. Though massacres had ceased in Austria 
and Germany, the Jews were still oppressed 
there and treated as an inferior caste without 
any human rights. In Poland, however, where 
they had settled in vast numbers durimg the 
XVIth century, they lived in peace and freedom 
within their autonomous communities. Poland 
thus became to the Jews of this period what 
Babylonia had been in ancient and Spain in 
mediaeval times, the centre of the spiritual life 
of the race towards which all outlying sections 
of the dispersed people naturally gravitated. 


CHAPTER VII 


Tue Jews In TurKEY AND PALESTINE UP To 
THE DECLINE OF SABBATHISM— 
(1492-1750) 


§ 36. 
Civil Life. Joseph Nassi. 


HE Turkish Empire which supplanted 
Byzantium arose forty years before the 

€A,|| expulsion of the Jews from Spain, this 
a Wie| being an act of divine foresight, said 

S| the Jewish chroniclers, in order to pro- 
“Ep a haven for the children of Israel to be 
exiled from the West. Many of the homeless 
Jews did indeed seek shelter in the Turkish 
dominions where they were welcomed by the 
sultans who knew the value of their industrious 
habits and commercial talent. Bayezid I1, when 
he heard of the edict against the Spanish Jews 
and Arabs, exclaimed: “That Ferdinand of 
Spain is a foolish king! He has ruined his own 
country to enrich ours!” The educated Sephar- 
dim rendered great service to Turkey where 
military pursuits occupied all the attention of 
the upper classes and agriculture was the sole 
occupation of the lower. The Jews immediately 
engaged in trades, technical arts and commerce 
178 . 





OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 179 


over land and sea. Through them the Turks 
were made familiar with the most recent inven- 
tions, the: use of gunpowder and cannon 
amongst others, which earned them much favor 
with the dominant military class. In their com- 
mercial activities, Greeks and Armenians were 
their only rivals. 


A great many Jewish communities were 
founded in European and Asiatic Turkey dur- 
ing the XVIth century. In Constantinople, 
the capital, there were some 30,000 Jews all ° 
told, and forty-four synagogues. ‘This great 
community was divided into groups according 
to the localities from which the members had 
come; the Castilians had their group, the Ara- 
gonese theirs, the Portuguesé theirs, and so on. 
The Sephardim, which was the name given to 
the Spanish and Portguese Jews, differed in 
language and customs from the Ashkenasim; or 
German immigrants. Each group had its own 
synagogue. Other cities of Turkey-in-EKurope 
besides the capital had their Jewish communi- 
ties, Salonika, Adrianople, etc. The head of all 
the Turkish Jews was the Chief Rabbi 
(chacham) whose appointment was ratified by 
the Sultan, and who, as representative of Jewry, 
held membership in the State Council of the 
empire. Educated Jews occupied important po- 
sitions at the court, some as advisors, others as 
physicians to the Sultans. 


180 JErEws IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


The status of the Turkish Jews was never 
more secure than during the reign of Sultan 
Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-66), under 
whom the empire attained the zenith of its glory 
and power amongst the kingdoms of Europe. 
The Jewish dignitaries in important positions 
at the court used their influence to the benefit 
of their own people. The most illustrious of 
these was Joseph Nassi. 


Nassi was from Portugal and belonged to a 
family of wealthy Marranos who had continued 
to observe their true religion in secret. When 
the Inquisition began to track them down they 
fled to the Netherlands and thence to Turkey 
where they might be free to be Jews openly 
(1552). In the course of his travels Joseph 
made the acquaintance of many EKuropean 
statesmen and in contact with them developed 
his talents as a diplomat. His gifts in this di- 
rection were remarked by the Sultan Suleiman 
who became his close friend, and bestowed upon 
him the exalted position of advisor and minister 
of foreign affairs, which he continued to occupy 
during the reign of Selim II, Suleiman’s suc- 
cessor. While unfailingly active in and loyal 
to the interests of the Turkish government, 
Joseph Nassi still remembered his fellow-Jews, 
and used all his considerable influence to help 
those who were suffering persecution in Chris- 
tian countries. Suleiman gave him as a gift the 


> 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 181 


ruined city of Tiberias in Palestine, to rebuild 
it and use as a settlement for Jews. Selim II 
conferred upon him the title of Duke of Naxos, 
Naxos being one of the Cyclade islands in the 
Archipelago. The Jews called their powerful 
co-religionist “Nassi,’” which means “a man of 
eminence, a great lord.” 

Joseph Nassi was a munificent patron of He- 
brew scholars and writers, of whom a great 
many had made Constantinople their home. He 
also supported rabbinical schools. After the 
death of Selim II, Joseph retired from office 
and devoted the remaining years of his life to 
intellectual pursuits, surrounded by the scholars 
to whom he had thrown open his vast library 
and collection of manuscripts. He died in 1579. 
Reina, his widow, founded a printing-house in 
Constantinople for the printing of books in He- 
brew. 


§ 37. 
Palestine. The Shulhan-Aruch. 


Many of the Jewish immigrants to Turkey 
made their home in Palestine where, ever since 
the time of the Crusades, Christians and Mo- 
hametans had continued to dispute possession of 
certain districts sacred to the members of both 
religions. Finally the territory passed into the 
hands of the Turks, devastated and ruined, yet 
it was to that very desolation, the precious rem- 


182 JErws IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


nant of their ancient fatherland, that the des- 
cendants of the exiled nation of Israel, weary 
of the persecutions they had suffered in Europe, 
returned in their thousands at last. 


The homeless newcomers could not revive the 
political conditions their ancestors had enjoyed, 
but they did succeed in founding a good many 
communities in the Holy Land to which the 
Turkish authorities granted certain privileges of 
self-government and the right to establish reli- 
gious institutions. In the XVIth century Jew- 
ish communities of considerable extent were to 
be found in Jerusalem, Saphed and Tiberias. 
Saphed became famous for the Talmudic schol- 
ars who lived there. \Jacob Berab, the Rabbi 
(1540), even conceived the plan of establishing 
in Palestine a high council of rabbis, somewhat 
after the system of the old Sanhedrin, to decide 
questions of religion, pass laws and appoint the 
spiritual leaders of the Jews in all countries. 
This ambitious project could not, however, be 
put into effect because the Palestinian commu- 
nities were too few and too poor. 

Then there appeared in Palestine a man who 
by his single effort, accomplished a task of such 
difficulty that a whole Sanhedrin would not 
have been too much to undertake it. This was 
- Joseph Karo (1488-1575), the author of the 
“Shulhan-Aruch,” the famous rabbinical code. 
A native of Spain, Karo was a young child 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 183 


when the edict of expulsion sent all the Jews 
out of the Catholic kingdom. His youth was 
spent in Turkey in Europe where he lived in 
Adrianople and other cities. He threw himself 
ardently into the study of rabbinical literature 
and displayed extraordinary talent. He devoted 
twenty years to revising the Jewish laws with 
supplements and explanations, which great work 
he completed only after his arrival in Safed 
where he occupied a position of eminence among 
the Talmudists of Palestine. Jacob Berab, eld- 
est of the rabbis there, solemnly bestowed upon 
him the title of “teacher of the law.” While in 
Safed Karo compiled a new code containing all 
the Jewish laws for popular use. He called it 
“Shulhan-Aruch” (The Covered Table) and it 
was printed in Venice in 1565. The work con- 
sists of four parts: “Ora-Chaim,” laws concern- 
ing religious ceremonies for the Sabbath and 
holidays; “Joredea,” laws concerning dietary ob- 
servances, the slaughter of animals, domestic du- 
ties, etc., ““Eben-ha-eser,” laws concerning fam- 
ily relations, divorce, etc., and “Hoshen-mish- 
path,” the civil and criminal code with the laws 
of legal procedure. New laws and regulations 
supplemented every article of the old codes, 
based on rabbinical commentaries or on popular 
custom. The “Shulhan-Aruch” stands as the 
most exhaustive code of Hebrew law, containing 
as it does many minor laws set down by certain 


184 JEws In TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


zealots of more than ordinary austerity and 
strictness. Karo’s contemporaries received this 
work with amazement at the power of intellect 
and range of erudition which had created it. 
By some he was regarded as divinely inspired; 
rumors were circulated to the effect that an 
invisible messenger from above (magid) had 
visited the scholar and revealed to him the 
mighty truths of the law. The author of the 
“Shulhan-Aruch” shared the belief of his fel- 
lows that he was a being of a superior order. 
He delved into the mysteries of the Cabala 
which had just begun to agitate the minds of 
the Palestinian Jews. 


§ 38. 


The Cabala. Ari. 


In the X VIth century, the Cabala had made 
perceptible headway among the Jews. The cal- 
amities through which they had passed pre- 
disposed their minds to a belief in mysteries, 
and fostered ideas of a hereafter and of the 
future kingdom ruled over by the Messiah who 
. would come to liberate the Jewish people and 
be their Savior. ‘The appearance in print of 
a new and sacred book called the “Zohar,” 
where hitherto it had only been obtainable in 
manuscript, did much to spread the influence 
of these mystic doctrines. Sects of hermits 
arose, preaching repentance and telling of the 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH ElistoRY 185 


kingdom of heaven. They believed that through’ 
the Cabala they could learn to become saints 
and communicate with the realm of celestial 
spirits. Safed had two famous Cabalists, Moses 
Cordovero and Elias Vidas. Cordovero pro- 
claimed his doctrine of three degrees of knowl- 
edge, the Bible, the Talmud and the Cabala, of | 
which the last was the highest because it re- 
vealed to the student the mysteries of God. 
Vidas’ book, “Reshith Hachna” (The Begin- 
ning of Wisdom) is filled with stern moral 
teachings and the portrayal of hell’s torments. 
A group of Cabalists calling themselves “the 
God-fearing men” met on Fridays in the syna- 
gogue at Safed and confessed to one another 
the sins they had committed during the week. 
Their leader was an ardent student of the mys- 
tic cult namd Isaac Luria Ashkenazi, or Ari, 
an abbreviation of the words “Ashkenazi Rabbi 
Isaac.” 


Ari was born at Jerusalem in 1534 into a 
family belonging to the Ashkenazi. He had 
grown up in Egypt where he received his Tal- 
‘“mudic training under the Rabbi of Cairo. But 
Talmudic law did not satisfy this youth’s search- 
ing mind; the study of the Zohar was more 
to his liking and to that he devoted all his 
time, seeking in its teachings the solution of 
the profoundest problems of religion. He lived 
the life of a hermit, spending his days in fast- 


186 Jews IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


ing and prayer, and from time to time he would 
pass into a state of ecstasy in which voices 
would come to him from heaven and beautiful 
visions appear. In 1570 Ari arrived in Safed \ 
and joined the group of Cabalists there, whose | 
leading spirit he soon became. Surrounded by 
the other members, he would wander over de- 
serted fields and cemeteries and discuss with 
them the mysteries of religion. On certain days 
it was their custom to visit the outskirts of 
Safed, where, according to the legends, Simon- 
ben-Jokai, the supposed author of the Zohar, - 
lay buried. On the site of his grave they per- 
formed mysterious rites, sang hymns of exalta- 
tion, and spoke of the imminence of the “time 
of miracles,’ telling how best to prepare to 
meet the approaching Messiah. Suddenly Ari 
disappeared, and it was discovered that he had 
died of a plague at the early age of 38 years 
(1572). His sudden death came to his follow- 
ers as a terrible blow; they began to speak of 
him as a saint. Some even carried their admira- 
tion so far as to declare that in his person the - 
“Messiah of the House of Joseph” had ap- 
peared, being the forerunner of the great “Mes- 


siah of the House of David.” Haim Vital,one V 


of Ari’s most intimate friends and disciples and 
the son of a copyist of holy books, became the 
chief exponent of the leader’s mystic doctrines. 
He wrote down the teachings Ari had preached 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 187 


and attributed to him many of his own ideas. 
The following is a resumé of their combined 
doctrine, collected under the title of the “Prac- 
tical Cabala”’: 


Man, as a consequence of his original sin, 
strayed from his divine source, from the world 
of pure spirits, and sank into an abyss filled 
with forces of evil. It is then the task of every 
true believer to free his own soul from the 
dominion of those forces and bind it once more 
to its lost divinity by means of fasting and 
prayer. 

The purification of the soul after death is 
accomplished through “wanderings” or reincar- 
nations (gilgul), by which the soul of a sinner 
enters another man’s body in which it has op- 
portunity to reform, but if it fails to do so it 
must again pass after death into yet another 
man’s body, and so on until it is completely. 
purged of evil. Instances are cited of human 
souls entering the bodies of animals and suffer- 
ing unspeakable torment. An intimate tie binds 
man close to the higher spirits; every acticn, 
every work he utters, has its repercussion in the 
world beyond. Great disturbances occur in 
heaven according to how some man prays or 
performs certain religious rites. It is even pos- 
sible to “summon” the Messiah, that is, to hasten 
his coming by means of fasting, repentance and 
atonement for sin. At all costs it is important 


188 Jews in TuRKEY AND PALESTINE 


never to cease to mourn the destruction of the 
Jewish kingdom, of Jerusalem and of the tem- 
ple. The advent of the Savior must be passion- 
ately desired at all times and expected from 
day to day. | 

All these commandments and beliefs con- 
tained in the “Practical Cabala” found a ready 
response in the hearts and minds of the people, 
and ultimately created the Messianic movement 
which in the seventeenth century overspread the 
entire Jewish world. 


§ 39. 
Sabbatai Zevt. 


All the Jews in Turkey, and those of Pales- 
tine in particular, fell ever more completely 
under the influence of the Cabalists with their 
ceaseless assurance of the imminent coming of 
the Messiah. Rumors of the early restoration 
of the Jewish kingdom in the Holy Land trav-— 
elled to the communities abroad, and filled the 
thoughts of Jews in Asia and Western Europe 
with speculations as to the date of the advent. 
Some vague hint in the “Zohar” was construed 
to set the date for 1648 and in that year a 
man actually did appear in Turkey, calling him- 
self the liberator of the Jewish people. His 
name was Sabbatai Zevi. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 189 


Sabbatai-Zevi (Shabsi-Zvi) was born in the 
Turkish city of Smyrna on the fast-day of the 
ninth Ab, 1626.. His father was a merchant ” 
of Sephardic descent. Sabbatai was very hand- 
some and possessed besides a beautiful and mel- 
odious voice. His extraordinary talents enabled 
him to master the whole of the Talmud and the 
Cabala at a very early age, thereby attaining 
the educational equipment considered necessary 
for every Jew at that time. His Talmudic men- 
tor was the celebrated rabbi of Smyrna, Joseph 
Yskafa, and on the side of the Cabala he was a 
follower of the ascetic Ari. A born dreamer, 
Sabbatai shunned the society of friends and fel- 
low-students and lived in almost complete soli- 
tude. In conformity with the Eastern custom, | 
he married very young, but married life did not 
please him, so that he soon divorced his wife. 
The farther he pursued the mysteries of the 
“Zohar” and the Arianic Cabala, the more pow- 
erfully he was impelled to assume the burden of 
redeeming the sins of all his people and thereby 
hasten the Messiah’s advent, as the Cabalist 
doctrine promised. Sabbatai spent his days in 
prayer and fasting which resulted in his becom- 
ing subject to fits of religious delirium, and 
while in these trances, when the dividing line 
between the real and the fancied disappears, it 
was easy to persuade himself that he was the 
man destined to be the very Messiah for whom 


190 JEWws IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


the world was waiting. This belief in his high 
destiny was apparent in his attitude towards his 
fellow-students who fell willingly under the in- 
fluence of the young hermit’s enthusiasm as he 
initiated them into the secrets of the Cabala. 
He was but twenty years old when a group of 
young visionaries and mystics accepted him as 
their leader. With the dawn of the year 1648 | 
indicated in the Zohar as the date of the Mes- 
siah’s advent, Sabbatai decided to reveal him- 
self to the people of Smyrna. ‘The day came 
when he uttered in the synagogue before the 
assembled congregation, the full name of God, 
Jehovah, instead of the customary “Adonai.” 
This word, according to tradition, might be 
spoken by none but the High Priest of the an- 
cient temple of Jerusalem himself. Sabbatai’s 
action was intended to convey that the restora- 
tion of the temple was at hand. 


As soon as the rabbis of Smyrna heard of the 
claims Sabbatai was putting forward, they ex- 
communicated the self-styled Messiah together 
with his followers. Even his old teacher, Joseph 
Yskafa, joined in the condemnation. Sabbatai 
was forced to leave his city but this only in- 
creased his renown (1651). His followers talked 
of him as the “suffering Messiah” while he went 
from one city to another throughout Turkey 
preaching his doctrines. He gathered many 
new adherents in Constantinople, Jerusalem, 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH Hustrory 191 


Cairo and Salonika. In the Egyptian capital 
the attention of the populace was drawn to 
him by the following incident: 


A tale was abroad concerning a young Polish 
woman named Sarah who had been kidnapped 
as a child and placed in a Christian monastery. 
From there she had succeeded in escaping to 
_ Holland where she had returned to her original 
faith. She was often heard to declare that she 
was destined to become the wife of the Jewish 
Messiah, and when her story reached the ears 
of Sabbatai he too said that the marriage had 
been decreed on high. His messengers were 
despatched to Europe and the beautiful Sarah 
returned with them to Cairo, where her union 
with Sabbatai was consummated with solemn 
ceremonies. 

Those wonderful adventures filled the hearts 
of the Jews with amazement and hope. The 
curse of the “herem” laid upon Sabbatai was 
forgotten and when, after long wanderings, he 
returned to Smyrna whence in his youth he had 
been expelled, he was met with acclamation and 
rejoicing, the people shouting “Long Live our 
king, our Messiah!” (1656). He gained new 
followers every day; self-styled prophets ap- 
peared who spread tales of the “holy mission” 
of the Redeemer from Smyrna, and of the ap- 
proaching “time of miracles.” One of the most 
zealous of these prophets was Nathan of Gaza, 


192 Jrws In TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


a native of Palestine. He sent out his “pro- 
phetic revelations” to all the Jewish communi- 
ties, declaring that the Messiah from Smyrna 
was soon to tear the crown from the Sultan’s 
head, after which, by means of miracles and 
marvellous exploits, he would lead all the Jews 
back to Jerusalem. Sabbatai’s name was soon 
famous throughout Europe, especially in Italy, \ 
Germany and Holland. It was commonly be- 
lieved that Jewry stood at the threshold of 
great events. A sort of spiritual abandon pos- 
sessed the people; some, when they met, would 
sing and dance together, others made long fasts 
and prayed continually, making public confes- 
sion of their sins. All, according to their fash- 
ion, were actively preparing to meet their Sa- 
vior. Special prayers for Sabbatai Zevi were 
offered up in the synagogues. Even the Chris- 
tians spoke and wrote a great deal about the 
new Jewish Messiah, connecting his advent with 
certain ancient theological discourses predicting 
a world-upheaval in the year 1666, according 
to calculations based on the Apocalypse. In 
vain the most honored of the rabbis inveighed 
against the people’s credulity, warning them not 
to be deceived; no one paid any heed to them. — 
All eyes were turned towards the East where 
great events, miracles and omens were hourly 
expected to occur. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 193 


§ 40. 

The Messianic Movement and Its Fall. 

The year 1666 when, according to the pre- 
dictions of Sabbatai and his prophets, the final 
change was to be made manifest, dawned at last. 
In this year it was expected that the new Mes- | 
siah would enter the Turkish capital and ac- 
quaint the sultan with his power. Sabbatai 
Zevi did in fact set out for Stamboul, escorted 
by a guard of honor, but the Turkish govern- 
ment had heard of the unrest his “mission” had 
been causing amongst the Jews and had taken 
due precautions for his reception. The moment 
he arrived with his body-guard in the capital, 
Sabbatai was arrested by order of the authori- 
ties and imprisoned (February, 1666). Two 
months later the prisoner and his disciples were 
sent by the Grand Vizier’s command to the cas- 
tle of Abydos, near Stamboul, where they re- 
mained. 


The imprisonment of the Messiah, so far from 
undermining the people’s faith in him, strength- 
ened it greatly. They gave full credence to the 
idea that the redeemer of Israel was passing 
through the period of supreme suffering which, 
according to the ancient legend, must precede 
the sublime act of liberation. Enthusiastic ad- 
herents flocked to Stamboul from every land in 
the hope of seeing the new Messiah and hearing 
from his own lips the glad tidings of deliver- 


194 JEws IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


ance. Many brought with them rich gifts, and 
gold and jewels wherewith to mitigate the Mes- 
siah’s sufferings by satisfying his creature needs. 
Sabbatai lived at Abydos like a prince in his 
castle; by bribing the Turkish guards, all visit- 
ors and messengers could gain admittance to his 
presecence. His prison became known to his 
followers as the “Migdal-oz,” the Castle of 
Power. From there he sent his decrees abroad 
to all Jewry the world over. He ordered that 
the fast on the ninth day of Ab, which had 
been established in commemoration of the de- 
struction of Jerusalem, be changed to a festival 
of rejoicing in honor of its coming restoration 
and of the birthday of the new Messiah, who 
was to rebuild it. 


Among the delegations that came to Sabbatai 
from Europe was one from Poland. Nehemiah 
Cohen, a member of this party, mistrusted Sab- — 
batai and desired to put his honesty to the test. 
Several personal conversations with the Messiah 
led this doubting Polish Jew to the conviction 
that Sabbatai was only trying to deceive the 
people. Firm in this belief, Nehemiah left Aby- 
dos and reported to the Turkish authorities 
everything that was taking place at the castle. 
The matter was referred to the sultan, Mahomet 
IV, who was so incensed at Sabbatai’s con- 
duct that he was ready to have the Messiah exe- 
cuted as a rebel on the spot. Upon his arrival 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 195 


at the Turkish court, a friendly courtier advised 
him to go over to Islam if he would save his 
life and appease the sultan’s fury. The pseudo- 
Messiah decided to take the fatal step; he en- 
tered the presence of Mahomet IV with a tur- 
ban on his head in token of his conversion. His 
wife and a few of his disciples followed his ex- 
ample. Then the “Messiah” who had renounced 
his faith was made a doorkeeper of the royal 
palace in Adrianople and given the name of 
Mahomet-Effendi (August, 1666). 


Notwithstanding his act of apostasy, Sabbatai 
continued to mislead his followers. To the 
Turks he said that he was using all his influ- 
ence to convert the Jews to Islam, and to the 
Jews he declared that his adoption of the alien 
religion was a mere pretence, a means of at- 
tracting the Turks to Judaism and accomplish- 
ing the glorious feat of redeeming the people of 
another creed. ‘The simple enthusiasts who were 
his followers accepted all the ridiculous tales 
that were circulated in Sabbatai’s name. Some 
voluntarily went over to Mohametanism in or- 
der to join the Master in his great task of re- 
demption. Others believed that it was not 
Sabbatai himself but his ghost who became con- 
verted to Islam, remaining in the world in the 
person of Mahomet-Effendi; as for the Messiah, 
he had ascended to Heaven and would again ap- 
pear when the hour of freedom would strike. 


196 JEws IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


Tales of this kind were spread all over the 
Jewish world by Nathan of Gaza and other 
prophets, and for many years the mass of Jews 
continued to believe in the divine mission of 
Sabbatai, the Messiah. | 

The hero of the movement, himself, was be- 
having very strangely in Adrianople. Now he 
would pretend to be a very devout Moslem, now 
he would conduct the services of Israel with 
song and dancing. The suspicion of the Turk- > 
ish government were once more aroused. At 
last they banished him to Dulcigno, an obscure 
little town in Albania where none of his fol- 
lowers were allowed to see him. There the false 
Messiah died in 1676, forsaken and alone. | 

The death of Sabbatai Zevi had a sobering 
effect on most of his followers, both in Asia 
and Europe. Many recanted and did penance 
for their ill-considered change of faith. The 
rabbis redoubled their efforts to keep the re- 
turned heretics within the fold and exercised the 
utmost vigilance in routing out all the followers | 
of the false Messiah from the midst of the 
community. 

Some nevertheless remained faithful to Sab- 
batai, clinging in their credulity to their belief 
in his divine mission. ‘They were convinced that 
the Messiah who had ascended to heaven would 
soon return to earth again and accomplish the 
deliverance of the Jewish nation. Later on a 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 197 


sect of “Sabbatians” was founded in Turkey, 
under the leadership of Jacob Zevi, the “Mes- 
siah’s” brother-in-law. Salonika, the home of 
Sabbatai’s kinsfolk, was their headquarters. The 
members of this sect evolved the strangest ideas 
of faith and morality. According to the lead- 
ers, there were two Gods, one the Creator of 
the world, and the other the God of Israel. It 
was the latter who had descended to earth in 
the person of Sabbatai Zevi. Further, they 
taught that no moral laws were binding upon 
men and that “at the end of time” everybody 
might sin as much as he pleased. All kinds of 
depravity was therefore indulged in freely by 
the Sabbatians; indeed their behavior became so 
notorious that the attention of the Turkish au- 
thorities was finally attracted to them and they 
found hemselves faced with persecution by the 
state officials. The late Messiah, having shown 
them the way out of difficulties such as this, they 
followed his example and adopted the religion 
of Mahomet. Islam received them, four hun- 
dred strong (1687). Jacob Zevi and the other 
leaders covered the sect’s apostasy with assur- 
ances of its occult significance. After Jacob’s 
death his son Berachiah_ became head of the 
Sabbatians of Salonika (1695-1740) and un- 
der him the sect degenerated steadily. While 
observing all the Mohametan ceremonies in 
public, they persisted in their Sabbatian faith 


198 JEws IN TURKEY AND PALESTINE 


and still believed their founder to have been 
the incarnation of God. ‘This sect existed in 
Salonika for a great many years, and a rem- 
nant of it is still to be found under the Turkish 
name of “donme,” the apostates. 


CHAPTER VIII 


THe JEws IN WESTERN EUROPE FROM THE 
XViItH To THE XVIITrH CENTURY. 


§ 41. 
Italy. 
LARGE proportion of the Jewish ex- 


iles from Spain made their way to 
Italy where they felt assured of being 

} a &| able to live in comparative peace. The 

@5| leader of this migration was Isaac 
Abarbarnel, the last of the great leaders of the 
Spanish Jews. 

Abarbanel first settled in Naples, but after- 
wards went to Venice. In Naples he held for 
some time an administrative post at the royal 
court, which, however, he resigned in order to 
devote himself wholly to study. He had written 
an exhaustive commentary on the Bible, and a 
number of other works on the fundamental prin- 
ciples of Judaism. ‘The profound grief with 
which he considered the disastrous career of his 
people, led him to consecrate his most ardent 
efforts to the fathoming of the Messianic dogma. 
By reference to ancient legends and the pro- 
199 





200 Tuer JEws IN WESTERN EUROPE 


phets’ predictions he tried to calculate the time 
of the Messiah’s due advent, which he believed 
to have become imminent. The aged and illus- 
trious sage, as he felt his life moving towards 
its term, rejoiced in the conviction that the hour 
of deliverance was at hand for all his race. 
Abarbanel died in Venice in the year 1509. 

He had not been long dead when his calcula- 
tion seemed to have justified itself, for in 1524 
a mysterious stranger appeared in Venice, hav- 
ing come from the Kast, no one knew whither. 
It was impossible to tell whether he was a real 
visionary or merely an impostor; at any rate, he 
said his name was David, and claimed to be of 
the tribe of Reuben (Reubeni). According to 
his story, he was from the distant land of Arabia 
where a Jewish kingdom existed, populated by 
desecendants of the ancient shepherd tribes of 
Israel, the Reubenites and Gadites. The king 
of that far country was his own brother, and he, 
David, had been sent into Europe as the bearer 
of messages of great moment to the monarchs | 
of Christendom. He entered Rome riding on a 
white horse, and went straight to the palace of 
Pope Clement VII, who received him in audi- 
ence for a considerable time. From Italy, Da- 
vid Reubeni proceeded to Portugal where, as 
in Rome, he was welcomed by King John III 
with the honors due to the representative of a 
fellow-ruler. This mysterious embassy created 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 201 


a conviction amongst the Jews that great events 
were afoot. It was rumored that David had 
come to Europe on behalf of the Arabian Is- 
raelites to arrange for the supply of firearms 
for their projected war against Turkey, the 
object of which was to regain possession of the 
Holy Land. 

The utmost excitement reigned in the clan- 
destine Jewry of Spain and Portugal, that is, 
among the Marranos upon whom the Inquisition 
had inflicted such intolerable suffermg. Solo- 
mon Molcho, one of the Marranos of Lisbon, 
followed the self-styled Jewish Envoy in his vis- 
its from place to place. This Molcho was a pas- 
sionate Cabalist and like many of his contem- 
poraries, indulged dreams of the imminent com- 
ing of the Messiah. Carried away visions of the 
Jews’ early deliverance, he left Portugal and 
went to Turkey and Palestine where he joined 
the Cabalists of those parts and spoke every- 
where he went of the approaching advent. On 
his return to Europe, he began secret negotia- 
tions with the Pope, and shortly afterwards 
achieved a bold exploit that astounded Europe. 
With David Reubeni he gained an audience of 
the German emperor Charles V at Regens- 
burg, and laid before him a plan to mobilize the 
European Jews for the Turkish war. This en- 
terprise, however, ended badly when the Em- 
peror had both of them arrested and taken to 


202 THe JEwSs IN WESTERN EUROPE 


Italy in his train. Molcho, as an apostate from 
Christianity, was condemned to death by the 
Inquisition and burned at the stake in Mantua 
(1532). As for Reubeni, he was imprisoned in 


Spain and remained there until his death several | 


years later. 

Thus the hopes of the Jews suffered cruel dis- 
appointment. ‘Their condition in Italy was 
changing for the worse. The Popes had begun 
to oppress them in the Papal States, and all 
Innocent III’s humiliating laws against them 
were restored and enforced. City Jews were 
segregated in ghettos and made to wear the dis- 
tinguishing badge whenever they appeared on 
. the streets. They were allowed to have no more 
than one synagogue in each town, and Tal- 
mudic study was again banned. ‘The invention 
of printing had brought about a vast increase 
in this branch of learning. The first complete 
edition of the Talmud was printed in Venice 


about 1520. ‘The enemies of the Jews revived © 


the old charge of insults to Christianity con- 
tained in various passages of the work, and the 
Inquisition ordered all copies of it to be burnt. 
The houses of the Roman Jews were searched 
and all the volumes confiscated on the day of 
Rosh-Hashona, 1553. In other Italian cities the 
same thing was happening. After this out- 
break of anti-Talmudic enthusiasm, however, 
the Catholic clergy revoked their ban and al- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 203 
lowed the Talmud to be reprinted on condition 
that all derogatory allusions to Christianity be 
omitted. Most of the censors appointed were 
converted Jews, who exercised great diligence in 
cutting out the objectionable passages. 

Few of the Popes equalled the fanatical Paul 
IV in hostility towards the Jews. He pub- 
lished two bulls enacting a whole system of anti- 
Hebrew laws applicable to the Jews in Rome 
and throughout the Papal dominions. In their 
cruel and humiliating character they were very 
much like the laws that had been in vogue dur- 
ing the Middle Ages. ‘They provided for the 
isolation of the Jewish residents in all cities and 
for the wearing of the distinguishing badge. No 
Christian might take employment in Jewish 
homes as servants or nurses to children; they 
were forbidden to be present at any Jewish feast 
or to allow themselves to be treated by Jewish 
physicians, or even to address a Jew as “mas- 
ter,’ whoever he might be. The ghetto-dwellers 
were allowed to engaged in petty trade only, and 
this usually took the form of dealing in old 
clothes; the lending of money at low rates of 
interest was also not denied them. They might 
acquire no real estate of any kind. The ruth- 
less and insulting laws contained in these bulls 
of 1555 drove the Jews to the brink of humilia- 
tion and financial ruin. 

The second half of the XVIth century saw 


204 Tuer Jews 1In WESTERN Europe 


the Jews of Rome and other Italian cities in the 
same state of defencelessness as that in which 
the German Jews had been sunk before them. 
The Roman ghetto was on one bank of the Ti- 
ber, so low-lying that when the river rose, the 
ground was completely under water. A wall 
with many gates cut off the ghetto from the rest 
of the city; special guards were set to watch the 
gates at night, so that none of the Jews might 
leave once they had been locked in at the ap- 
pointed hour. According to one visitor to Rome 
in 1724, the Jewish quarter consisted of only 
two long and six short streets, and there some 
three thousand families, or twenty thousand per- 
sons lived in terrible congestion. Most of the 
Jews were occupied in some form of small trade 
or handicrafts. 'The ghetto streets were lined 
with shops, large and small, where all manner 
of merchandise, from foodstuffs to old clothes 
were sold. The trade in old clothes was raised 
by the Roman authorities to the status of a 
“privileged” occupation for this ancient race, 
and the promotion carried with it the right to 
penetrate into the Christian city for the pur- 
chase of cast-off garments, as also have store- 
houses outside the ghetto. Of the handicrafts, 
tailoring was most generally followed. “AI 
through the summer,” says a chronicler of that 
time, “hundreds of tailors are to be seen at work 
on the streets, near the doorsteps of their homes. 


OUTLINE oF JEw1sH History 205 


The women are beside them, making button- 
holes and buttons; so skilful are they that they 
are employed in this work by tailors of other 
nationalities from every part of the city. 
Roughly speaking, three-fourths of the Jewish 
craftsmen are tailors, and the rest work at vari- 
ous other skilled trades.” 

The special garb was compulsory for all 
Jews, irrespective of sex, age or class. The 
men wore yellow caps and the women, a yellow 
scarf, cut to a certain width, over their heads. 
In course of time, the yellow headgear was 
changed to orange, and then to red, so that fi- 
nally the “barretts,’ as these caps were called, 
looked almost like the red hats worn by the 
cardinals. This modification resulted in another 
order which enforced the use of yellow only, so 
as to preevnt trouble on this score. 

These indignities were put upon the Jews 
with the single object of making them renounce 
their religion for Christianity. The so-called 
“compulsory” sermons were arranged for the 
same purpose, the Jews being forced to sit in 
churches and listen to the sermons of the priests. 
This they had to do every Saturday afternoon, 
when police guards came to the ghetto and 
drove them in crowds, men, women and children 
over twelve years of age, into the churches. “At 
two o’clock precisely,” relates an eyewitness 
(1724), “they were made to appear in church. 


206 THE JEWS IN WESTERN EUROPE 


The large wooden crucifix hung on the wall was 
covered with a sack in order that they might not 
jeer at it. The men and women sat on sepa- 
rate benches, separated from each other by a 
curtain as in their synagogues. A priest occu- 
pied the pulpit which was raised well above the 
ground. In a loud voice he would begin his ser- 
mon, using so many Hebrew words that 
he could easily be mistaken for a Jew himself, 
and the discourse followed this method: first he 
praised the Jews as God’s chosen people; then 
change completely, reviling them for their stub- 
bornness, and heaping scorn upon them, for re- 
fusing to heed his teaching. The sermon usually 
lasted two hours, during which time nobody 
might move, nor say a word nor fall asleep. 
Supervisors watched the listeners all the time, 
and severely punished any failure to obey.” 

From time to time the agents of the Papal 
police took some Jew by force to the “house of 
new converts” in order to prepare him for bap- 
tism. ‘These prisoners were ordinarily detained 
for forty days spent by their captors in per- 
suading them to change their religion. Some 
would submit, but those who persisted in re- 
maining adamant were driven back to their 
ghetto. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 207 


§ 42. 
Science and Letters in Lialy. 


In spite of their deplorable civil condition, the 
Italian Jews reached a high plane of intellectual 
development during the XVIth and XVIIth 
centuries. It seemed as though they had fallen 
temporary heirs to the culture of the Spanish 
exiles. The lists of their distinguished men 
included famous Talmudists, preachers, Cabal- 
ists, philologists, historians and philosophers. In » 
the XVIIth century Italian Jewry gave two 
creative thinkers to the world, Jehuda-de-Mo- 
dena and Joseph Delmedigo. 

Jehuda-De-Mondena (1571-1648) occupied 
the position of Chief Rabbi of Venice, but in 
his heart he entertained grave doubts as to the 
truth of both rabbinical and cabalistic doctrines. 
Of his many books, two stand out as more re- 
markable than the rest; one, a refutation of the: 
rabbinical laws (Shaagath Ari), and the other 
(Ari Nohem) a protest against the Cabala, 
whose sacred books the author declares to be 
spurious. Being afraid to publish these works 
during his lifetime, De Modena left them in 
manuscript form, and it was not until much later 
that they were brought to light. 

Joseph Delmedigo (died in 1655), a native 
of the island of Crete, was a writer of another 
kind. Few men of his time had received a wider 


208 Tue Jews In WESTERN EUROPE 


or a more exhaustive education; he was familiar 
with most ancient and modern languages, and 
at the University of Padua, where he was a 
student, he learnt mathematics and astronomy 
at the feet of the immortal Galileo. His studies 
in physical and medical science did not, how- 
ever, prevent his being attracted to the Cabal- 
istic school of thought. 

His passion for knowledge went hand in hand 
with a passion equally great for travel. He 
visited many parts of Europe and Asia, and 
made his home alternately in Poland and Lithu- 
ania until his middle age, when he went from 
Amsterdam, Hamburg and _ Frankfurt to 
Prague where he engaged in the practice of 
medicine. In a large volume called “Elim,” 
Delmedigo expounded the knowledge he had ac- 
quired in all branches of secular learning. His 
lesser works are devoted to the “secret learning” 
or the Cabala. (Matzref-Le Hoch, etc.) — 

Even the women were active in literature dur- 
ing this productive period of the Italian Jews. 
The two poetesses, Debora Ascarelli and Sara 
Sullam, wrote in Italian. The former, wife of | 
a highly-respected Roman Jew, translated some 
of the Hebrew hymns into lovely Italian verse, 
and Sara Sullam, daughter of a Venetian mer- 
chant, was one of the most cultured women of 
her day. A Genoese priest tried for a long 
time to convert this gifted poetess to his own 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 209 


faith, but in vain. He then asked her permis- 
sion at least to pray for her conversion, and 
this she granted on condition that he, in his 
turn, allow her to pray that he might be con- 
verted to Judaism. Sara Sullam died in 1641. 
Of all her works none are known but a few 
sonnets and a book on the immortality of the 
soul. 

At the beginning of the XVIIIth century a 
gifted young writer became known in Italy. The 
name of this forerunner of the renaissance of 
Jewish poetry was Moses-Haim Luzzato of 
Padua (1707-47). From his early youth Luz- 
zato had shown extraordinary talent as poet 
and stylist. At the age of twenty, he had 
already written “Migdal Oz” (A Strong Tow- 
er), an idyll in pure Biblical Hebrew verse, 
setting forth the triumph of sacred over pro- 
fane love. This work was rare in contemporary 
Hebrew literature where hitherto the poets had 
found their inspiration only within the walls of 
the synagogue, and had expressed that inspira- 
tion only in psalms of sorrow or in hymns. Had 
Luzzato continued along the path he first pur- 
sued, he would most likely have achieved the 
reform of Hebrew poetry; as it was, he allowed 
himself to be swept away by his enthusiasm for 
the Cabala, and the mystical philosophy of the 
Cabalists, and the course of his life was diverted 
from its original channels. He studied the 


210 THE JEWS IN WESTERN EUROPE 


“Zohar” and Ari’s commentary thereon, and 
then began to write in that same bizarre and 
cryptic manner, though so skilfully, it must be 
said, that he was even moved to call his Cabal- 
istic works the “second Zohar.” In his passion 
for the “secret wisdom,” Luzzato went out of 
his depth. He came to believe that he wrote at 
divine dictation, received through an intangible 
messenger in the form of an angel or “magid.” 

In 1729, Luzzato confided to a few fellow- 
students of the Cabala, these ideas which so 
profoundly affected him, and they conceived an 
ordinate admiration for him accordingly. In 
letters to their friends they hinted that a young 
Cabalist in Padua was about to reveal new 
truths to the world, and that very soon. This 
took place at a time when the rabbis were every- 
where conducting a desperate campaign against 
the secret Sabbathian sects, and publicly curs- 
ing them in the synagogues. ‘Their attention 
being now drawn to Luzzato’s activities, they 
proceeded to persecute him with the other Sab- 
batian heretics of whom they believed him to be 
one. Their first action was to extract a promise 
from him under oath to cease writing on the 
Cabala, but he broke his word. Thereupon the 
Venetian rabbis invoked the “Herem” against 
him and his books, that is, excommunicated him 
from the synagogue and forbade the reading of 
his works. As an excommunicate, Luzzato could 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 211 


not remain in Italy, and for a long while he 
drifted from place to place throughout Ger- 
many and Holland. It was in Amsterdam that 
he produced his masterpiece, a philosophical 
drama called “The Glory of the Righteous” 
(La-iesharim-Tehila), and a series of works on 
the Cabala and ethical subjects. Luzzato’s pow- 
erful impulse towards mysticism and Messian- 
ism, filled him with longing to see the Holy 
Land. He therefore journeyed to Palestine, 
but died there of a plague at the early age of 
forty years. He was buried in Tiberias. 
Luzzato’s place in Hebrew literature was at | 
a cross-roads; as Cabalist he belonged to the 
past, as poet to the future, for his verse anti- 
cipated the tendencies which came to their full 
development during the XI Xth century. 


§ 43. 
The Netherlands.—Acosta and Spinoza. 


The scope of international commerce in- 
creased immensely with the discovery of Amer- 
ica, and the main current of trade between the 
Old World and the New flowed through the 
two greatest maritime countries of Europe, 
England and the Netherlands. The free-spirited 
and energetic peoples of both these countries 
had rid themselves of the Catholic yoke in the 
XVIth century, and adopted the creed of Pro- 
testants. 


212 Tur Jews In WeEsTERN EvROPE 


In Holland religious emancipation but 
shortly preceded political, and a heroic, long- 
drawn struggle against Spain ended with the 
defeat of the cruel king Philip II, crowned 
inquisitor and grandson of Ferdinand the Cath- 
olic. The Netherlands became a free republic 
in 1579, and immediately all the persecuted 
came flocking to its shores from Spain and Por- 
tugal. Many descendants of the Marranos were 
among the immigrants, fleeing from the dangers 
and hardships that attended their secret observ- 
ance of Judaism. They surged into Holland by 
the thousand, able for the first time, to be Jews 
outwardly as well as in their hearts. Most of 
them were merchants of wealth, physicians, ex- 
officials and military officers. A large commu- 
nity soon gathered in Amsterdam, and smaller 
groups in other cities of the Netherlands fol- 
lowed their lead. .The founder of the Jewish 
community in Amsterdam was a Portuguese 
Marrano, Jacob Tirado. In 1593 Tirado, ac- | 
companied by a few Marrano families, arrived 
in the town, and professed their religion in 
public. They chose a rabbi and soon had built 
a synagogue which they called Beth-Jacob 
(Jacob’s House). Twenty years later the Jew- 
ish population of Amsterdam had grown to 
several thousands, and was rapidly increasing. 
The immigrants were granted communal self- 
government, and a council of elders (maamad) 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 213 


consisting of both secular and ecclesiastical mem- 
bers were in charge of their lay affairs; religious 
“questions were decided by rabbis or ‘“‘chachams” 
alone. ‘The council of elders shared with the 
rabbis the right to penalize free-thinkers or re- 
fractory members of the communities as they 
saw fit. | 

In the Netherlands, as in every other coun- 
try where the Jews were allowed to live in peace 
and liberty, a number of gifted men rose to 
eminence in various branches of literature and 
science. ‘There were poets and _ prose-writers 
who used the Hebrew, Latin, Spanish or Portu- 
guese languages, and poetry and the Cabala, 
owing to their emotional and imaginative ap- 
peal, find a high place in Dutch-Jewish litera- 
ture. Nor did they lack philosophers whose 
- chief concern it was to inject the principles of 
free thought into their theology. So far in- 
deed did some of these thinkers go in their in- 
dependence, that they incurred the displeasure 
of the orthodox rabbis who began to persecute 
them. ; 

One of these free-thinkers was Uriel Acosta, 
an erstwhile Marrano, born in Portugal in 1590. 
He had been brought up a Catholic from child- 
hood, and studied law in his youth at the age 
of twenty-five he was treasurer of a church. 
But his searching intellect found no satisfaction 
in the dogmas of Catholicism, so he took up the 


214 Tuer Jews In WeEsTERN EvuROPE 

study of Biblical literature. Immediately he 
was seized with an ardent desire to return to 
the faith of his forefathers. He left Portugal 
secretly, and went to Amsterdam where he set- 
tled with his mother and brothers, living openly 
as a Jew. But even Judaism failed to satisfy 
him, so opposed was his freedom-loving mind 
to the multitude of external ceremonies and 
rites established by the Talmudists and ob- 
served with the greatest fidelity by the Jews. 
He was unwilling to submit to these irksome 
regulations, and publicly criticized the doctrines 
of the “Pharisees,” as he called the rabbis. This 
brought its natural result; the heretic was ex- 
communicated from the synagogue until he 
should reform. Uriel did not reform; on the con- 
trary, he went deeper into his evil courses. He 
wrote a book in Portuguese called “A Survey of 
the Legends of the Pharisees,” in which he ex- 
posed the falsehood not only of the Talmudic 
legends, but of the Bible as well. (1624.) This 
exploit caused all the Jews to shun Acosta as a 
dangerous heretic, and for several years he lived 
in isolation and disgrace. He could not, however, 
endure this state of ostracism forever, so at last 
he decided to recant in public, and in the presence 
of the rabbis. Great solemnity dignified the 
event. Acosta entered the synagogue where the 
rabbis and a large congregation were already 
assembled, and in a loud voice read the formula 


OUTLINE oF JEWIsH History 215 


of repentance, renouncing his views which he 
declared contrary to the creed of Israel. Then, 
following the order of the rites of recantation, he 
received thirty-nine lashes of a whip upon his 
back, and finally prostrated himself on the 
threshold of the synagogue, and all the congrega- 
tion stepped out over his body. These humilia- 
tions completely unhinged the mind of the un- 
happy heretic; shortly afterwards, in a fit of 
despairing anger, he committed suicide by blow- 
ing out his brains. (1640.) He left his autobiog- 
raphy, written in Latin, entitled “Exemplar 
Humane Vite,” (An Example of a Human 
Life). 

Another free-thinker, Baruch, or Benedict, 
Spinoza, stood his ground with far greater firm- 
ness than Acosta. The greatest philosopher Jew- 
ry ever produced, Spinoza was born in Amster- 
dam in 1632. His earliest education he received 
under the rabbis and scholars of Amsterdam, in 
@ Talmud-Torah where the studies were divided 
over seven grades. The gifted youth followed 
the rabbinical teaching first with the study of 
medieval Hebraic philosophy in the works of 
Ibn-Ezra, Maimonides and Krescas, and after- 
wards with general secular branches of learning. 
Descartes’ system of philosophy was just then 
attracting a great deal of notice, and Spinoza 
was profoundly impressed with the idea of the 
elevation of free human reason above the blind 


216 Tue JEws IN WESTERN EUROPE 


belief in religious dogma and legend. From the 
reason, he held, all knowledge sprang, and in 
accordance with this principle, his mode of living 
underwent a complete change, passing out of the 
range of rabbinical direction. Having decided 
to live as his reason alone dictated, he went no 
more to the synagogue and ceased to observe any 
of the rites of his religion, considermg them un- 
necessary. ‘The rabbis did all they could to bring 
him back to the path of right-thinking, but when 
they had proven their efforts fruitless, they ex- 
communicated him. (1656.) 

Thereupon Spinoza left Amsterdam, whither 
he returned only on rare occasions. He spent the 
rest of his life at the Hague, where he lived the 
life of a recluse, emerging from his philosophical 
studies only for a few hours each day, during 
which he plied the trade that provided him with 
his frugal livelihood. He was a grinder of lenses. 

In 1670 he published a_politico-theological — 
treatise in Latin, the “Tractatus theologico- 
politicus,” which filled the clergy of all creeds 
with the greatest alarm. It was the first un- 
biased examination of the Biblical dogmas as the 
foundation of theologies. The “Ethics” and other 
works contain the exposition of Spinoza’s doc- 
trines in general philosophy, whereby he shows 
the Deity and Universe as one indivisible whole. 
This philosophy, known as Pantheism, made its 
author’s name famous throughout the world. 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH History 217 


Amongst Christians and Jews alike, it was ac- 
claimed and condemned with equal ardor. 

The Jewish thinkers of that epoch, could not, 
however, subscribe to the teachings of an ex- 
communicate. Their religion had cost them too 
much suffering for them to be ready to change 
it for any system of mere philosophical reason- 
ing, however persuasive. Spinoza, so far as these 
fellow-Jews were concerned, remained an outcast 
until the day of his death. (1677.) 


§ 44, 


Manasseh-ben-Israel, and the Return of the Jews 
to England. 

The place of highest eminence among the 
rabbis and writers of the Netherlands Jewry in 
the XVIIth century, belonged to Manasseh- 
ben-Israel. He was born into a Marrano family 
in Lisbon, in 1604. For a long time his father 
languished in a Portuguese prison, the Inquisi- 
tion having discovered him observing the rites 
of Judaism in secret. At last he managed to 
escape with his family to Amsterdam, where 
they might live openly as Jews, and there the 
young Manasseh received a many-sided educa- 
tion. His profound knowledge of the literature 
of his own race was equalled by his familiarity 
with the literatures of Europe which he knew 
in ten languages. He was the intimate friend 
of some of the most famous Christian scholars 


218 THe Jews In WESTERN EUROPE 

of his day, and for some time carried on a@ cor- 
respondence with a royal savante, Christina, 
princess of Sweden. He owed his reputation to 
his literary works, some of which were in Latin, 
some in Spanish and some in Hebrew. The 
most celebrated of these is his “Breath of Life,” 
(Nishmath Haim) written in the latter tongue 
in 1652. It is a medly of philosophy and the 
Cabala. No such universal attention was drawn 
to any of his writings as to the treatise in Eng- 
lish “In Defense of the Jews.” It was an at- 
tempt to refute the superstitious medieval accu- 
sations against the Jewish people, and did great 
service to the Jews who lived in that country 
from which medieval prejudice had once ex- 
pelled them. 

Some three hundred and fifty years had 
elapsed since the English Jews had been ex- 
pelled, (1921), during which period the life of 
the English nation had changed very consider- 
ably. Most of the population had renounced 
Catholicism and become Protestants; the sect 
of “Puritans” had arisen, all of whose members 
read diligently in the Old Testament which 
they accepted as the basis of the true religion. 
This devotion to the Bible formed a bond be- 
tween the English Protestants and the Jews, 
and created a feeling that a movement to re- 
voke the order of expulsion would be an act 
of justice greatly to be desired. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 219 


Cromwell was at that time head of the state 
(1649-58), and he was an ardent devotee and 
student of the Bible. A group of Jewish mer- 
chants living in Amsterdam thought the auspi- 
clous moment had arrived when they might peti- 
tion Cromwell for the rehabilitation of their 
people in England. Manasseh-ben-Israel was 
chosen envoy, and they gave him full power to 
conduct the negotiations. Following an exchange 
of letters with the Protector, he set out for 
London in the autumn of 1655. The address 
he presented on behalf of the “Jewish nation,” 
begged Cromwell to admit them into the country 
once more and to grant them freedom of reli- 
gion, and occupation, and communal self-gov- 
ernment. A commission consisting of ecclesi- 
astics and laymen was appointed to consider the 
petition. 

This event aroused much excitement in Eng- 
lish society, and a number of authors published 
their attempts to revive the anti-Jewish temper 
of the Middle Ages. Manasseh-ben-Israel’s 
contribution to the literature of the subject was 
the above-mentioned work, which made a deep 
impression upon the people. 

The government was in no hurry to decide the 
issue, but refrained from molesting such Jews 
as had already settled in London. Soon the 
capital became the seat of a community of 
considerable size, most of the members being 


220 Tue Jews In WESTERN EUROPE 


Sephardim from Holland. Later on, Jews set- 
tled, undisturbed, in all the cities of England. 
Manassah did not live to see his labors bear 
fruit, for he died on his homeward journey to 
Holland. (1657.) 


§ 45. 
Germany. The Reformation and the Jews. 


The great religious movement known as the 
Reformation which, as it were, revived the youth 
of many European nations, had its origin in 
Germany. ‘There it was that the first voices 
were raised in protest against the oppression of 
the Catholic church and the arbitrary power of © 
the Pope. The leader of these “Protestants” as 
they were called, was the famous Martin Luther 
(1517). 

The prelude to his crusade against the ex- 
isting ecclesiastical order, was the beginning of 
conflict between the ignorant Dominican friars 
and the enlightened members of the “humanist” 
party, whose chief representative was Johann 
Reuchlin. This scholar was perfectly famiilar 
with the Hebrew language which he had learned 
from Jewish teachers, and his study of the lit- 
erature of Israel inspired him with a deep sense 
of friendship towards the Jewish race. He be- 
came their ardent protector against the cruel 
persecutions of the Catholic clergy. The latter, 
seeking to do harm to the cause of both the Jews 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 221 
and the Humanist students of Hebrew letters, 
employed a converted Jew, an ex-butcher named 
Pfefferkorn, to lend his name to a charge of 
blasphemy and immorality against the ‘Talmud. 
The apostate, together with his Dominican mas- 
ters, succeeded in inducing the Emperor Maxi- 
milian I to issue an edict ordering the destruc- 
tion of all Hebrew books. (1509.) All priests 
were directed to confiscate them wholesale and 
burn those in which passages were found deroga- 
tory to the Christian religion. 

Thereupon the noble-hearted Reuchlin as- 
sumed the defence of the proscribed works, and 
in an address which he presented to the highest 
dignitaries of the church, he demonstrated the 
falseness of the charges brought against them. 
The Talmud, he pointed out, was merely a 
collection of ancient commentaries on the Bib- 
lical laws, and dealt with Hebrew theology, law 
and medicine besides; that to burn it served no 
purpose, since peaceful persuasion only, not 
brute force had power to alter the minds of 
men; that, so far from being prevented, the 
study of the Cabala ought to be encouraged 
because of the close resemblance some of the 
ideas therein bore to the Christian dogmas. 

Reuchlin’s opinions raised a storm amongst 
the “obscure ones” as the Catholic zealots were 
called at that period. He was accused of at- 
tempting to disseminate “Judean heresy,” and 


222 ‘Tur Jews In WEsTERN EvurRoPE 

was summoned to appear before the Inquisition 
in Cologne. What this war between the human- 
ists and the “obscure ones” might have resulted 
in no one can tell, had not Luther just then 
begun his Protestant campaign which ended in 
a general denunciation of Catholicism through- 
out Germany. 

Luther’s attitude towards the Jews in his 
capacity of founder of the new Church, was 
uncertain and vacillating. At first he preached 
humanity towards them, and in a book he pub- 
lished in 15238 he bitterly attacked their enemies. 
“The fools which are our people,” he wrote, 
“the Papists, the bishops, the monks, have used 
the Jews in such fashion that every good and 
true Christian ought forthwith to have turned 
Jew. Had I been a Jew and seen such ignorant 
imbeciles the rulers of our church, I had sooner 
become a hog than a Catholic. For the Catho- 
lics have borne themselves towards the Jews as 
though they were curs and not human beings. 
Yet they are our brethren, and brethren of 
our Lord. . . . Therefore Christian, not 
Papal, love should determine our conduct to- 
wards them; we owe them our friendship and 
opportunity to labor for their livelihood, as we 
for ours.” 

Later on, however, when Luther had risen to 
the peak of his power and assumed the same 
infallibility towards his Protestants as the Pope 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 223 


had done towards the Catholics, a radical change 
came over his views concerning the Jews. He 
preached against them as anti-Christ and or- 
dered their persecution everywhere; “to the 
glory of God and Christendom,” he called for 
the destruction of their synagogues, for the 
seizure of their Talmud and their prayer-books, 
for the suppression of religious instruction by 
rabbis, for the restriction of their choice of 
occupation and the compulsory employment of 
able-bodied members of all their communities in 
public labor. (1543.) Shortly before his death, 
Luther enjoined his followers either to force 
baptism upon the Jews or to expel them from 
the country altogether. Thus the founder of 
the German Reformation revived many of the 
crude medieval superstitions it had been his 
declared purpose to combat. 


§ 46. 


The Condition of the Jews in Germany and 
Austria. 


The Reformation, while it undermined the 
prestige of ‘the Catholic Church throughout the 
Protestant countries, did not destroy the uni- 
versal enmity towards all non-Christians. In 
only one way did it affect the situation of the 
Jews—instead of being persecuted by the clergy 
as formerly, they were now persecuted by the 


224 Tue Jews In WESTERN EUROPE 


kings instead. ‘The German emperors most 
often abandoned their “crown serfs” as the 
Jews were rated, to the mercy of the rulers of 
the various districts and cities in the empire. 
In the cities, the Jews’ bitterest enemies were 
the merchants and skilled workers, who refused 
to tolerate economic competition on the part of 
“aliens.” The city magistrates, and the trade- 
corporations of guilds, oppressed and humiliated 
the defenceless ghetto-dwellers, and now and 
then riots broke out as a result. 

One day, the Christian artisans of Frankfort- 
on-Main, led by a baker named Fettmilch, sur- 
rounded the Jewish quarter and attacked the 
inhabitants. The Jews put up a desperate 
fight under the protecting ghetto walls, and 
some in the forefront of the attacking mob 
were killed. It was impossible, however, to 
withstand the overwhelming numbers of their 
enemies, and at length the ghetto was taken 
by storm. Led by Fettmilch, the crowd swarmed 
in, and sacked, plundered, destroyed and vio- 
lated their way through, finally driving all the 
Jews out of the city. (1614.) 

A similar outbreak occurred in Worms, where 
another populous Jewish community existed, 
and after a long struggle, the artisans of that 
city also forced the aliens to leave. (1615.) 
This time, the attempt was less successful, for 
the Emperor Matthias took the part of the 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 225 


persecuted people. He ordered the punishment 
of the ringleaders of both riots; Fettmilch and 
his followers were beheaded, and imperial troops 
escorted the dispossessed Jews back to their 
ghettos in Frankfort and Worms. 

In Austria, the eastern portion of the German 
Empire, where Catholicism remained the pre- » 
vailing faith, the Jews were hardly better off. 
During the Thirty Years War between the rival 
Christian factions (1618-1648), they had suf- 
fered much in the way of depredations and 
violence at the hands of the foreign armies which 
overran Austria at that time. 

The German Emperors, whose residence was 
in Vienna, the Austrian capital, allowed the 
Jews to live their in their own quarter. A still 
more numerous community existed in Prague, 
the chief city of Bohemia. The ruler of Ger- 
many during the War, granted the Jews few 
civil rights, but as a devout Catholic, he was 
diligent in his efforts to save their souls. In 
1630 he issued an order commanding the Jews 
of Vienna and Prague to attend church every 
Saturday to hear the priests’ sermons, and the 
unwilling congregations were strictly watched 
lest they slept or talked while the sermons were 
in progress. 

Forty years later, in the reign of Leopold I, 
a terrible disaster befell the Jews of Vienna. 
Margarita, the Emperor’s wife, was a Spaniard 


226 Tue Jews IN WESTERN EUROPE 

and the most pious of Catholics. Her confessors 
found in her hatred of the Jews a useful tool, 
and they did all they could to keep this enmity 
aflame within her. On the birth of a still-born 
child, the Empress begged her husband to ap- 
pease the wrath of God by performing a “good 
deed,” and expel the Jews from Vienna and 
Lower Austria. Leopold obeyed this entreaty, 
which emanated as much from the Catholic 
priests as from Margarita, and issued his edict 
of expulsion in spite of some protest in the 
Imperial Council, where certain of the members 
voiced their disapproval of so inhuman an 
action. 

In 1670, accordingly, the Jews were ordered 
to leave Vienna and the Duchy of Austria with- 
in a few months. In vain they besought the 
revocation of the emperor’s decision; in vain 
they offered huge sums of money to be allowed 
to remain. Their own influential men and 
foreign envoys interceded for them alike in vain. 
Several thousand exiles left Lower Austria and 
Vienna within the time given them. The gov- 
ernor of Vienna bought the deserted ghetto 
from the emperor for the sum of one hundred 
thousand gulden, and called it Leopoldstadt in 
the emperor’s honor. The synagogues were 
transformed into churches. 

A small group of the Viennese exiles settled 
in Prussia which had arisen as Austria’s rival 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 227 


in the struggle of supremacy within the German 
Empire. 

Frederick William, the Grand Elector of 
Brandenburg and Prussia, willingly admitted 
the Jews into his territories. They founded a 
new community in Berlin which in time grew 
to be the largest in all Germany. His son, 
Frederick I, King of Prussia, harbored a preju- 
dice against the Jewish religion, however, and 
began to restrict the freedom of its adherents. 

Then one Hisenmenger, a Protestant theo- 
logian, made a collection from a variety of 
sources of all the prosperous medieval tales 
about the ways of the Jews, and published them 
in a great volume written in German and en- 
titled “Judaism Exposed” (Entdecktes Juden- 
thum). Before the book had even left the 
printers’ presses, rumors of its contents spread 
alarmingly abroad. ‘The Jews implored the 
Emperor Leopold to forbid its publication 
which would certainly rouse the fury of the 
credulous populace against them. ‘The emperor 
granted their petition but later on King Fred- 
erick of Prussia gave permission for the book 
to be published in his own city of Konigsberg 
(1711). 

The “Judaism Exposed” became the inex- 
haustible source to which all the enemies of 
Israel ever afterwards repaired for the false 
accusations and preposterous slanders they dis- 


228 Tur JEws IN WESTERN EUROPE 


seminated to harm the Jews. ‘They found in 
this work an endless store of distorted Tal- 
mudic or rabbinical quotations, and countless 
false reports that exposed the Jews in a repul- 
sive or ridiculous light. 


§ 47, 
The Intellectual Life of the German Jews. 


Segregated in their social life, the Jews held 
aloof from their German neighbors in their in- 
tellectual activities as well. In spite of the 
dawn of the new era, medieval customs still 
survived unchallenged in the Jewish quarters of 
the kingdom. 

Young men were being brought up from 
childhood with no mental training but that 
afforded by Talmudic learning, and the men of 
the middle classes devoted their leisure to the 
same study. As for the men and women of the 
lower orders, they gained what food their minds 
required from the reading of “morality tales” 
which began at that time to appear in the 
Jewish-German dialect. 

In the XIVth century, Prague, the capital 
of Bohemia, became the intellectual center of 
Austro-German Jewry. A Jewish printing- 
press was established there, as also were several 
schools for advanced Talmudic study, called 
“veshiboth,”’ which had famous rabbis at their 
head. 


OvuTLINE of Jewish History 229. 


One of these rabbis, Jacob Poliak (died about 
1530), acquired a certain renown as the inventor 
of “pilpul,” a curious system of trick answers to 
Talmudic questions. By this method, the ques- 
tion under consideration was made to appear 
infinitely more complex than it really was. 
The procedure was as follows: first the student 
would quote every contradictory opinion he 
could find throughout the Talmud bearing upon 
the matter in hand, then one by one he would 
refute and thus eliminate them. 

It was a form of mental gymnastics which 
undoubtedly whetted the edge of the students’ 
reasoning faculties, but it was death to clear 
and logical thinking. The “pilpul’” was severely 
condemned by all the best rabbis. 

The name of one of the rabbis of Prague, 
Yomtov-Lipman Heller, is closely associated 
with the history of the Austrian Jews during 
the Thirty Years’ War. He was chairman of 
the commission appointed to take charge of the 
special tax of 40,000 gulden sent from the Jew- 
ish communities of Bohemia each year to Vienna 
towards the expenses of the war. Although the 
rabbi did his best to organize the payment of 
this heavy tax equitably amongst the various 
sections of his community, he could not do so to 
the satisfaction of all, and his administration 
was often reproached by those who considered 
themselves unjustly used. At last the enemies he 


230 THE Jews In WESTERN EUROPE 

thus incurred sent a report to Vienna, complain- 
ing of irregularities in the administration, and 
mentioning for good measure, that in one of 
Heller’s works, expressions were to be found 
disparaging the Christian religion. The result 
of the movement’s most furious antagonists was 
Prague, and his removal to Vienna by order of 
the emperor. (1529.) There he was flung into 
prison with common criminals while the authori- 
ties considered the accusations against him. The 
crime of showing disrespect to the Church was 
punishable by death, and this would have been 
Heller’s fate had not the Jewish community in 
Vienna interceded successfully in his behalf. 
The emperor set him free, but deprived him of 
the further right to occupy the position of rabbi, 
and fined him 10,000 gulden into the bargain. 
Thus bereft of his honorable standing and of 
all his fortune, Lipman Heller left Germany 
and emigrated to Poland where he became the 
rabbi of Cracow. 

His most important works are a commentary 
on the Mishnah (Tosfoth Yomtov), which was 
used as a text-book in the Talmudic schools, 
and a highly interesting autobiography (Megi- 
lath Ayva), in which all his adventures are set 
forth. 

One of the very rare representatives of secular 
learning in the “realm of rabbinism” which was 
German Jewry, was David Hans. (Died 1613.) 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 231 


Living most of his life in Prague, Hans was an 
ardent student of mathematics, geography and 
history. ‘The famous astronomers, Kepler and 
Tycho Brahe, were his friends. He compiled 
an historical chronicle in two parts, one devoted 
to Jewish history, the other general. “Zemach 
David,” Prague (1592). In the course of this 
work, the author went to many sources outside 
Jewish chronicles. He also published two other 
works, one on astronomy and one on mathe- 
matical geography. 

Germany also produced a famous Cabalist, 
Isaiah Horwitz (1630), the rabbi of Frankfort 
and Prague. The upheaval caused by the 
Thirty Years’ War, led him to leave Europe 
and spend the remaining years of his life in 
Palestine. Devoted to pious deeds, he lived in 
Jerusalem and Safed, which latter town was the 
hotbed of the Cabalist movement whose adher- 
ents lived there like hermits. In Safed he com- 
pleted his life-work begun in Europe, the 
“Shne Lucoth Habrith” (The Two Tables of 
the Covenant), better known under its abbre- 
viated title of “Shelo.” It is an enormous 
volume containing a collection of articles on the 
Cabala, on law, ethics, penitential rites, and 
rules of life for hermits according to the doc- 
trines of Ari and Vital. 

The Messianic Movement founded by Sab- 
bathai Zevi, found followers amongst the Ger- 


232 Tue Jews In Western Europe 

man Jews, who, in the midst of their hardships 
as subjects of oppressors, longed for the advent 
of the wonderful savior who would deliver them 
into freedom, but their hopes were doomed to 
bitter disappointment. Sabbathai’s fraudulent 
claims were finally exposed, and the rabbis at 
once began to persecute all who were suspected 
of being members of any Sabbathian sect. One 
of the movement’s most furious antagonist was 
a well-known ‘Talmudist named Jacob Emden, | 
whose home was in Altona, near Hamburg. — 
(Died 1776.) He left no stone unturned in 
searching out the remotest hiding-places of the 
“Sabbathian heresy” and ruthlessly pursued all 
suspects, without respect of person, though some 
were the most esteemed members of the com- 
munity. His writings heaped censure upon the 
heads of all heretics, dead or alive. Emden 
became the center of attention when he entered 
into a controversy with Jonathan Ejbeschutz, a 
famous rabbi of Prague. (Died 1764.) Ejbe- 
schutz was an eloquent preacher and a learned 
Talmudist, but he had also studied the Cabala, | 
and was rumored to be carrying on secret 
negotiations with the Sabbathians. He was in 
the habit of writing occult Cabalistic formule 
on pieces of parchment and giving these to the 
sick as talismans sure to cure them. When he 
became chief rabbi of Hamburg, he also became 
a near neighbor of Emden who began to watch 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 233 


him closely. He obtained some of the alleged: 
talismans, and declared that some of them con- 
tained references to Sabbathai Zevi, whereupon 
he publicly accused their author of a strong 
leaning towards, if not actual participation in, 
the Sabbathian heresy. (1751.) The open accu- 
sation of Ejibeschutz caused great disturbance 
amongst the rabbis, who split into two parties, 
,one siding with Emden and the other with the 
‘chief rabbi. The struggle was upheld by both 
factions, and the death of Eibeschutz found 
German Jewry definitely divided into two 
opposite camps, the Talmudists on the one side 
and the Cabalists on the other. 


CHAPTER IX. 


Tue JEws In RusstA AND POLAND. 
XVitH-XVIiItrH CENTURY. 


§ 48. 
The Golden Age. 


HE XVIth century was the golden age 
for the Jews in Poland and Lithuania. 
rage Poland inherited the supremacy in 
irie| Jewry that Spain had lost, for the hor- 
ae") rors of medieval Western Europe 
drove multitudes of Jews into the eastern coun- 
try where they soon made their presence felt 
in its economic development. The highest stra- 
tum of Polish society was the class of land- 
owning nobles, and the lowest the peasant class. 
The Jews, who represented the industrial and 
commercial activities of the kingdom, came be- 
tween the two. Their only competitors in the 
cities were the Polish guilds and the German 
merchants. 

The Polish kings of the X VIth century were 
all protectors of the Jews in their dominions. 
Sigismund I, brother and successor of Alexan- 
der (see § 34) ratified the rights his predeces- 
234 





OUTLINE oF JEWIsH History 235 
sors had granted them. (1507.) His wealthy 
Jewish subjects rendered him valuable financial 
service, supervising the collection of state taxes 
and customs dues, lending him money for the 
prosecution of his wars, leasing or managing 
the royal estates which they developed with 
great efficiency and consequent profit to the 
king. In many ways they contrived to enrich the 
royal treasury. Michael Yosephovitch, chief tax- 
supervisor and collector of Lithuania, became 
very influential at court and was appointed elder 
or chief of all the Lithuanian Jews. This charter, 
granted by the king, carried with it extensive 
privileges, amongst others, permission to deal 
directly with the king on any important issue 
connected with Jewish affairs, the right to try 
and to pass sentence on Jews according to the 
law of Israel and use his own methods of collect- 
ing all government taxes. A rabbi, learned in the 
Jewish law, was appointed his assistant. With 
their racial integrity so securely safeguarded, 
the prosperity of the Jews grew apace; their 
communities flourished in Brest, Grodno, Troki, 
Pinsk and other cities of Lithuania. 

The excellent circumstances of the Jews often 
aroused the envy of their enemies, espcially of 
the Catholic clergy, whose influence had suffered 
a great diminution with the spread of the reli- 
gious reform from the West. The Protestant 
movement which went back to the Bible for its 


2386 ‘THe JEws In Russia AND POLAND 


foundation, inclined many Catholics towards 
Judaism, and a number of voluntary conver- 
sions followed. One Polish woman, Catherine 
Zaleshvska, accused of ‘Jewish tendencies” was 
burned at the stake by order of the local bishop; 
the execution taking place in the market-place 
of Cracow in 1539. The clergy accused the 
Jews of seeking these conversions, particularly 
in Lithuania, and discussed repressive measures 
against them. But the good King Sigismund 
saw that nothing came of their attempts to in- 
terfere with the people he had taken under his 
special protection. 

His successor, Sigismund II August (1548- 
72), made a declaration upon his assuming the 
crown, to the effect that he would safeguard all 
the civil rights of his Jewish subjects. He 
extended the scope of their self-government, 
granting both rabbis and elders the right to 
try refractory or criminal members of their 
communities according to the Mosaic-Talmudic 
law, and even impose heavy penalties upon 
them. This was the nucleus of the system of 
autonomous communal life which, by uniting 
the members of each community, drew all the 
communities together with a sense of racial — 
unity. 

During Sigismund II’s reign the Catholic 
clergy again attempted to revive the old perse- 
cutions of Jews. Rumors were set afloat, accus- 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 237 
ing the purchase of holy communion bread from 
a Christian woman of Sokhachev, which the 
Jewish buyers stabbed until it flowed with blood. 
The supposed perpetrators of the crime were 
burned at the stake, but the king agrily de- 
nounced this conviction of innocent people on 
the strength of suspicion that had no foundation 
except in the superstitious ignorance of their 
accusers. When the clergy followed their exe- 
cution of the alleged defilers of the host with 
reports accusing the Jews of killing Christian 
children as Passover sacrifices the king issued 
an edict ordering the instant suppression of all 
such outrageous statements unless corroborated 
by four Christian and three Jewish eye-wit- 
nesses. (1556.) 

Sigismund’s successor, Stephan Batory, also 
declared the above attacks upon the Jews to be 
base and groundless slander, used for the pur- 
pose of oppressing and robbing the Jews. He 
zealously protected the civil rights they had 
held under the former occupants of the throne, 
and added new privileges to those they already 
enjoyed. (1580.) 

About that period the order of Jesuits was 
rising to immense power throughout Poland. 
This order of monks fought all non-Catholics 
with equal frenzy, using every conceivable 
means, fair or foul, to attain their ends. Their 
efforts at extermination were directed impar- 


238 THE JEWS IN RUSSIA AND POLAND 


tially against Protestants, Greek Orthodox 
Catholics and Jews. Soon they had become the 
most potent educational force in Poland, almost 
all the tuition of Polish children falling into 
their hands, and when their pupils left the 
Jesuit schools, their minds had been filled with 
the most extraordinary superstitious beliefs and 
the deepest hatred towards alk non-Roman 
Catholic mankind. 

The Jesuit pupils grew up to occupy positions 
of importance in every walk of life, and their 
evil influence soon permeated the government. 

Sigismund III and Vladislav IV, kings of 
Poland during the first half of the XVIIth 
cetury, already relaxed their protection of the 
Jews. ‘The city governors, or magistrates, and 
the artisan guilds restricted the rights of Jews 
in the direction of trades and commerce, and 
the usual ecclesiastical charges against them be- 
came more and more frequent. But they were 
still strong enough to fight against their enemies, 
for they were fortified in the possession of com- 
munal freedom and in the powerful sense of 
racial unity that bound them together, as also 
in the richness of their spiritual life. 


§ 49. 
The Kahals and the Waads. 


The Jews of Poland formed a separate ele- 
ment in the population, governed by their own 


OUTLINE OF JEwisH History 239 
elected representatives, spiritual and temporal. 
The community affairs were under the direction 
of the Kahals, or community councils, which 
existed in all cities where Jews lived, except in 
the very small towns or villages. In the case 
of Jewish communities too small to have a 
Kahal of their own, the one nearest to them 
directed their affairs. ‘The members of the 
Kahals were elected once a year during Pass- 
over week, and were chosen by vote-casting and 
the drawing of lots. iach Kahal formed spe- 
cial groups within itself, each group attending 
to some special branch of administration. Three 
or four elders (Rosh), were the chiefs of the 
Kahal, and after them came the “members of 
eminence” (Tubim), judges (dayans), super- 
visors, and trustees of various institutions. The 
scope of the Kahal’s activities was very wide. 
It included the collection and forwarding of the 
district tax to the royal exchequer, the appor- 
tionment of the taxes for the government and 
for their own communal uses, the supervision of 
synagogues, cemeteries and charitable institu- 
tions, the drawing up of deeds for transfer of 
real estate, supervising the education of the 
young, the settling of law-suits between mem- 
bers of the community, with the assistance of 
the “dayans” and the rabbi. 

The rabbis ruled and judged the members 
of their communities according to the laws of 


240 THE JEWS IN RUSSIA AND POLAND 


the Bible and Talmud, so far as those laws 
were applicable to practical life, but there were 
occasions when the local rabbinical court was in 
doubt whether to apply certain laws, or when 
the litigants, discontented with their decision, 
appealed to a higher court. It also happened 
now and then that one Kahal would enter into 
litigation against another, or some private citi- 
zen against a Kahal. In these cases rabbinical 
conventions were held every year to act as the 
higher tribunal where justice could be dealt out 
to all who sought it. At first this assembly 
was convened at the time of the great fairs to 
which multitudes came from far and wide; of 
these, the fair at Lubin was the principal. Ever 
since the time of Sigismund I, the rabbis had 
been accustomed to meet there for the trial of 
civil cases “according to their own law.” Later 
on, these rabbinical and elders’ conventions oc- 
curred more frequently, and as a result, a 
permanent institution called the ‘“Waad” or 
Diet, was established. It was convoked annually 
and its members represented all the Jewish com- 
munities of Poland. It was called the “Diet of 
the Four Countries,” because its members came 
from the four parts of the kingdom, from Great 
Poland, whose capital was Posen, from Cracow 
in Little Poland, from Lwvoff in Podolia and 
from Ostrog in Volynia. The Waad not only 
tried appealed cases and established the inter- 


OvuTLINE oF JeEwisH History 241 
pretation of laws, but issued new ordinances 
pertaining to public and religious affairs. Its 
activities were of particular importance during 
the X VIIth century. 

Lithuania, which did not belong to the Polish 
crown lands, had its own Waad, consisting of 
rabbis and secular delegates from the five largest 
communities in the country, Brest, Grodno, 
Pinsk, Vilna and Slutzk. 

The leaders of Jewry were ardent in their 
efforts to strengthen the nation’s unity and pre- 
serve its characteristics. ‘The education of chil- 
dren was the chief preoccupation of the Kahals 
and the Waads, and in every community the 
rabbi was regarded as the school-children’s nat- 
ural guardian. Very often he was at the same 
time “Rosh-yeshiba,” i.e., head of the highest 
Talmudic school in his own city, and supervisor 
of the “Kheder” or elementary schools as well. 
In the larger communities, however, where the 
position of rabbi carried with it manifold public 
and ecclesiastical duties, the post of “Rosh- 
yeshiba” was filled by someone else, usually 
some celebrated Talmudist. 

A contemporary chronicler draws a graphic 
picture of school-life in the Jewish communities 
of Poland and Lithuania in the first half of the 
XVIIth century. “In no other country,” he 
writes, “ought knowledge of the holy teachings 
of Judaism to be so widespread as in the Polish 


242 Tur JEws In Russia AND POLAND 


kingdom. For in every community there is a 
yeshiba whose head receives a liberal salary 
paid out of the public funds, in order that he 
might be relieved of material care and pursue 
his studies unharrassed. Young men studying 
in the yeshiba are also supported at the charge 
of the communities. Each student supervises 
not less than two boys whom he teaches in 
order that he may become proficient in instruc- 
tion and in learned debate. Each student with 
his two pupils boards in the house of some 
prosperous member of the community, and is 
considered a member of the family. There is 
not one Jewish home without a scholar, some- 
times in the person of the head of the family, 
or of the son, or son-in-law, or of a boarder- 
student at the yeshiba; and very often all of 
these could be found in the same household. 
“The following curriculum is followed by Pol- 
ish students: The school-year at the yeshiba is 
divided into two periods, summer and winter 
sessions. At the beginning of each, the Gema- 
rah, or Babylonian Talmud is studied with great 
diligence, as also are the commentaries of Rashi 
and the Tossafists. All the scholars in the com- 
munity, the young men and all others who de- 
sired to study, assemble daily in the school where 
the Rosh-yeshiba sits where he may be seen by 
everyone. The students and men of learning 
stand round him. He lectures on the Galacha, 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 243 


commenting on, and supplementing it as he 
goes. When the lecture is over, scholastic de- 
bates are held, various contradictory passages 
out of the Talmud or its commentaries are com- 
pared, the contradictions eliminated by other 
quotations and contradictions in those quota- 
tions disclosed and eliminated so that the prob- 
lem at last stands clearly forth, solved. 

“The head of the yeshiba has a special servant 
who makes daily rounds of the elementary 
schools and sees that the children are attentive 
and diligent. Once a week, on Thursdays, the 
pupils of these kheders come to the house of 
the “gabay” or supervisor of their school, who 
gives them tests in what they have studied dur- 
ing the week. Wrong answers are punished 
with a flogging administered by a servant at the 
supervisor’s order, and a reprimand before the 
other boys, so that the culprit may remember 
to do better next week. On Fridays, the boys 
have to pass examinations given by the Rosh- 
yeshiba himself, an ordeal which keeps enough 
fear in the children’s hearts to ensure their 
studying industriously. . . . Men of learning 
are held in high esteem and are obeyed by all 
the people. ‘This proves a powerful stimulus 
to learning; all who would be influential within 
their community strive towards scholarship, and 


thus the land is filled with knowledge.” 


244 ‘Tuer JEws In Russia AND POLAND 
§ 50. 
The Growth of Rabbinism. 


Thanks to the freedom of government within 
the Jewish communities and the increase of 
schools, Talmudic learning in Poland reached 
a degree of excellence that had never been 
equalled. By the end of the XVIth century, 
that country, which had been almost negligible 
in the spiritual world of Jewry, had become 
supreme. The first great scholars to arrive in 
Poland, came from the neighboring land of 
Bohemia, where the Talmudic “pilpul’”’ invented 
by Jacob Poliak was much in vogue. (See § 47.) 
A pupil of Poliak’s, Sholom Shakhna (died 
1558), founded a Talmudic School or yeshiba 
in Lublin, from which most of the most eminent 
Polish rabbis graduated. One of these, a scholar 
of Cracow named Moses Isserlis (or Ramo, 
died 1572), was a contemporary of Joseph 
Karo, the Palestinian author of the “Schulchan- 
Aruch,” and Isserlis did much to have this code 
adopted in Poland. Being a Sephardic Jew, 
Karo had made no mention in his book of any 
of the rituals and customs common to the 
Ashkenasim, or Polish and German Jews, so 
Isserlis included in his text of the “Schulachan- 
Auruch” a great many rules derived from popu- 
Jar customs in those regions, or from the experi- 
ences of the Ashkenasic rabbis. As Karo had 


OUTLINE oF JEw1sH History 245 


called his book the “Covered Table,” Isserlis 
called his supplement the ‘“Table-cloth” 
(Mappa). His edition of the code was adopted 
by the Polish, Lithuanian and Russian Jews as 
a text-book on religious law. He was the chief 
of the community in Cracow, the ancient Polish 
capital, and there a great number of disciples 
gathered about him, many of whom became in 
after years great and famous rabbis. Besides 
his supplement to the “Shulachan-Auruch” he 
wrote many other books on rabbinical law and 
theology. 

One of Isserlis’ contemporaries and friends 
was Solomon Luria (or Rashai, died 1573), a 
remarkable 'Talmudist who occupied the posi- 
tion of rabbi first in Ostrog and then in Lublin. 
Unlike his Cracovian friend, Luria attached but 
small importance to the “Shulchan-Auruch,” 
regarding it as an elementary, popular work, 
not worth the attention of a serious scholar, 
Luria took up the study of the original source 
of all the law, the Talmud, and wrote profound 
commentaries on many of the treatises contained 
in that vast work. These he published under 
the title of “Solomon’s Sea” (Yam Shel She- 
lomo). He had many pupils. and disciples and 
was the founder of a school of rabbinical litera- 
ture. 

Both these Jearned men were often called 
upon to decide questions of rabbinical learning 


246 TueJEWwSIN RussiIA AND POLAND 


_ and law, by correspondents all over Poland, and 
in Italy, Germany and Turkey as well. A 
collection of their answers and rulings was pub- 
lished in a book called “Questions and Answers” 
(Shaalothu 'Teshuboth). 

The scholars of the succeeding generation fol- 
lowed in the footsteps of these two founders of 
Polish rabbinism. Some wrote commentaries 
on the Talmud, Rabbi Meir (or Maharam) of 
Lublin, Rabbi Samuel Edels (or Maharsho) or 
Ostrog; others wrote supplements and interpre- 
tations of the old codes of laws, Rabbis Mordecai 
Joffe of Posen, Joel Sirkis of Cracow, David 
Halevi of Lvoff, and many others. 

Jewish learning flourished in Poland in the 
XVIIth century as it had done in Babylonia 
during the era of the Amoraim. A great many 
works of scholarship were printed in the Jewish 
printing shops of Cracow and Lublin. Tal- 
mudic and rabbinical studies held undisputed 
sway throughout the country; secular learning 
and philosophy were altogether neglected, and 
lovers of the occult confined their studies to 
the Cabala alone. The best-known work on 
the Cabala was written by Nathan Shapiro, 2 
prominent Cabalist of Cracow; his book was 
called “Exposing the Depths“ (Megale Amu- 
koth) 1678. 

The religious unrest stirred up by the Re- 
formation, created within Polish society several 


OUTLINE oF JewisH History 247 
sects whose tendencies were opposed to the 
established church. Of these the one which most 
closely resembled Judaism in its dogmas was 
that of the Unitarians, who denied the Trinity 
and the divine origin of Christ, but recognized 
the religious and ethical creed of the Gospel. 
These heretics were disdainfully called “half- 
Jews” or “Judaists” by the Catholic clergy. 
Christian theologians of various denominations 
frequently engaged the rabbis in controversy, 
and as a result of this practice, a remarkable 
book appeared in 1593, written by Isaac of 
Troki, entitled “The Strengthening of the 
Faith” (Hizzuk Emuna). In the first part of 
this book the Jewish scholar defends Judaism 
against the attacks of Christian theologians, and 
in the second he assumes an attitude of aggres- 
sion, criticising the dogmas of the church. He 
reveals a number of contradictions in the text 
of the Gospel, points out where the New Testa- 
ment deviates from the Old, and shows where 
the church dogmas of later ages departed from 
the teachings of the New Testament itself. For 
a long time no one dared publish this work and 
it did not appear until a hundred years after- 
wards in a Latin translation made by a Chris- 
tian writer. Its formidable title was the “Fiery 
Arrows of Satan,” and the purpose of its publi- 
cation was the exposition of the “Jewish falla- 
cies.” In after years, this book was used by 


248 ‘THE JEWS IN Russia AND POLAND 


Voltaire and the French Encyclopedists of the 
XVIIth century, wherewith to belabor the 
dogmas of the church. 


§ 51. 


Khmelnitzki and the Cossack Massacres. 

In the middle of the XVIIth century the 
condition of the Polish Jews took a change for 
the worse, owing to the increasing bitterness of 
inter-racial, inter-religious and inter-class strug- 
gles in that kingdom. ‘The Polish and Russian 
peoples had come into conflict, as also had the 
Catholic and Greek-Orthodox Churches, and the 
nobility and the peasants. The Shlakhta, or 
nobles of Poland, oppressed the Russian peas- 
ants on their estates, and the Catholics incited 
the kings against their Greek-Orthodox sub- 
jects in particular and all non-Catholics in gen- 
eral. 

This state of affairs was especially bad in the 
eastern provinces of Poland, known as the 
Ukraine or Little Russia. The larger portion 
of the population was Russian and of the peas- 
ant class, employed by Polish “pani” or land- 
owning nobles. A smaller section was the mili- 
tary group of Cossacks, who in time of war, 
served the Polish government. Besides the 
Cossacks in the service of the king, there were 
others, who lived in freedom on the steppes 
north of the Snieper Falls. They were called 


OvTLINE oF JeEwisH History 249 
Zaporozhtsi. The Orthodox Cossacks and the 
peasants hated the Poles, their oppressors; they 
hated the Jews also for occupying the middle 
class between the nobles and themselves. As 
Jews often leased the estates belonging to nobles 
they acquired the same power over the peasants 
as the owners possessed, and the Russian peas- 
ant, whose dealings were more often with the 
Jewish supervisor than with the Polish prince 
who actually owned the land, came to look upon 
the former as the immediate cause of all his 
hardships and meditated revenge accordingly. 
The bitterness of the down-trodden was mingled 
with the hatred of another religion, and the long 
pent-up feelings of the ignorant Russian popu- 
lation against the Jews finally broke out in a 
terrible uprising of the Cossacks and peasantry 
in the last year of King Vladislav IV’s reign. 

The leader of the Ukrainian rebels was Bog- 
dan Khmelnitzki, a Cossack chief from the city 
of Chigirin. He gathered together an immense 
horde of Cossacks and peasants of the Ukraine, 
made an alliance with the Zaporozhtzi and the 
Tartars of the Crimea, and at the head of that 
vast army moved towards Poland prepared to 
invade the kingdom. (1648.) The Polish troops 
sent out against them were defeated, and King 
Vladislav dying, the country was plunged into 
all the disorder consequent upon an interreg- 
num. The rebellion spread over the whole of 


250 THEeJEWSIN RuvssiA AND POLAND 


the Ukraine and the adjacent provinces. Bands 
of Cossacks and Russian peasants, led by 
Khmelnitzki and his confederates, the ruthless 
Zaporozhtzi, overwhelmed all resistance and de- 
stroyed Poles and Jews with the utmost sav- 
agery. “The murders were accompanied by 
torturing of the most barbarous description,” 
says a Russian historian. “The victims were 
skinned alive, sawed in halves, clubbed to death, 
roasted on live coals or scalded with boiling 
water. Even infants were not spared. The 
worst cruelties were reserved for the Jews. Wtter 
extinction was to be their lot, and every trace 
of pity shown them was looked upon as de- 
liberate treason. The scrolls of the Torah were 
snatched from the synagogues, and danced upon 
by Cossacks as they caroused with vodka. The 
Jews were then stood on the sacred manuscripts 
and prodded mercilessly with knives. 'Thou- 
sands of Jewish infants were thrown into wells 
or buried alive.” 

Particularly tragic was the fate of Jewish 
refugees who fled out of smaller towns and vil- 
lages into the fortified cities in the hope of find- 
ing protection against their enemies. Khmelnitz- 
ki, learning that several thousand were in hiding 
within the fortification walls of Nemirov in 
Podolia, sent a troop of Cossacks to destroy 
them. Owing to the difficulty of taking the 
city by storm, the Cossacks resorted to cunning. 


OUTLINE oF JEw1sH History 251 


They approached Nemirov with Polish banners, 
and asked for the gates to be opened. The Jews, 
believing they were Polish troops come to rescue 
them, admitted the enemy and paid dearly for 
their mistake. (June 1648.) Joined by the Rus- 
sian population, the invaders killed every Jew 
in the city. 

Yehiel-Mikhel, the rabbi and Rosh-yeshiba of 
Nemirov, hid with his mother in the cemetery, 
where they were found by one of the rioters, a 
shoemaker. He began to club the rabbi, whose 
aged mother implored the murderer to kill her 
instead of her son. But the inhuman brute slew 
the rabbi first and her afterwards. 

Young Jewish women were often spared, to 
be forcibly baptized and married by the Cos- 
sacks and peasants. One beautiful girl, carried 
off by a Cossack for this purpose, told him that 
she knew how to charm bullets so that they could 
strike her and rebound without doing her any 
harm. The ignorant Cossack, challenged to con- 
vince himself, shot the girl who fell, mortally 
wounded to the ground. But she died rejoicing 
at her deliverance from the enemy’s hands. 

Another woman, as the Cossack intending to 
marry her was dragging her towards the church, 
jumped off the bridge over which they were 
passing into the river beneath. 

About 6,000 Jews perished in Nemirov, and 
all those who managed to escape fled to the 


252 TueJews in Russia AND PoLAND 


fortified city of Tulchin. There, however, a 
second bloody drama was enacted similar to the 
last. The invaders besieged the fortress where 
several hundred Poles and some two thousand 
Jews had taken shelter. The besieged swore 
not to betray one another, and vowed to defend 
their stronghold to the last man. The enemy 
was kept at bay by the bullets of Jews, shooting 
from the fortification walls; the siege continued 
without success for the Cossacks who, tiring at 
last of their wasted efforts, conceived a base and 
treacherous plan to enter the city. ‘They sent 
a message to the Poles within the gates, saying: 
“Surrender the Jews to us; them we will punish, 
but we will leave you unmolested.” The Polish 
nobles, forgetful of their oath, decided to sacri- 
fice the Jews in order to ensure their own safety, 
and admitted the enemy into Tulchin. 

The Jews were first disarmed, then robbed 
of all they possessed, after which they were 
offered the alternative of conversion or death. 
Not one of them would betray his religion, so 
fifteen hundred were put to the cruellest and 
most inhuman death. The perfidious Poles were 
ill-repaid for their treachery, for when the Cos- | 
sacks had finished with the Jews, they proceeded 
to exterminate all the Roman Catholics among 
whom were many of the most prominent repre- 
sentatives of the nobility of Poland. 

From Podolia the rioters penetrated into 


OvuTLINE oF JEwisH History 253 
Volhynia where the massacres continued through 
the summer and autumn of 1648. The Polish 
troops, led by the valiant Jeremiah Vishnevetzki 
succeeded in defeating them here and there, but 
were unable to suppress the rebellion. It was 
not until the accession of Jan-Casimir, brother 
of Vladislav IV, was elected king at Warsaw, 
that peace negotiations were definitely opened 
between the Polish government and the Cos- 
sacks. In 1649 peace was restored, the Cossacks 
having acquired certain rights and privileges 
within the Ukraine, amongst others the right to 
prohibit Jews from settling m Cossack lands. 

Jan-Casimir allowed all forcibly baptized 
Jews to resume the profession of their own 
religion. The women fled from the Cossacks who 
had stolen them and returned to their own 
families. The Waad of the Four Countries 
assembled in Lublin in the winter of 1650 and 
passed measures for the restoration of order in 
the public affairs and in the domestic relations 
of the Jews. ‘The anniversary of the massacre 
in Nemirov was proclaimed a day of fasting 
and prayer, in memory of the martyrs who 
perished there. 


254 Tur JEws 1n Russia AND POLAND 
§ 51. 
The Jews During the Muscovite-Swedish 
Invasion. 


The Poles soon broke their treaty with the 
Cossacks and attempted to subdue them once 
more, whereupon the leader or hetman of the 
Cossacks, Bogdan Khmelnitzki, proposed to the 
Muscovite Tsar Alexis Mikhailovitch, the an- 
nexation of Cossack Ukraine to his dominions. 
In 1654, therefore, the inhabitants of Little 
Russia, as this territory was called, became the 
subjects of the Tsar. Immediately, Muscovite 
troops moved to the adjacent provinces of 
Lithuania and White Russia with the purpose 
of making war on Poland. ‘The Jews of both 
countries suffered terribly during the war which 
lasted for two years (1654-56), and each sur- 
render of a Polish city to the allied invaders 
meant a fresh massacre or wholesale expulsion 
of the persecuted Hebrews. 

When the city of Mohilev-on-the-Dnieper 
surrendered to Alexis, he ordered all the Jews 
out of the city and turned their homes over to 
the officials of the city government and the 
Russian authorities. The Jews, however, ling- 
ered on in the city, hoping that the Poles might 
soon win it back again, but their optimism cost 
them dear. 'Towards the end of the summer 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 255 


of 1655 Colonel Poklonski, the commander of 
the Russian garrison in Mohilev, heard that 
Polish troops were approaching the city. Fear- 
ing that the Jews might join the enemy, he 
made them all leave the city limits, and as they 
fled away with their wives and children, and 
whatever property they had been able to carry 
with them, Russian soldiers fell upon them and 
put them to death. 

When Vilna, the Lithuanian capital, was sur- 
rendered. to the Muscovite troops, the Jews suf- 
fered as before; most of them, however, man- 
aged to escape, but those who were left behind 
were either killed or expelled by order of the 
Tsar. ! 

Then came the turn of the crown lands of 
Poland, when the Swedish invasion brought the 
country to the very brink of ruin. (1655-58.) 
The whole territory was transformed into a 
military camp. ‘The Jewish communities had 
to stand successive onslaughts by Muscovite 
soldiers and Cossacks, by Swedes and finally, 
by the Polish troops, whose brutality knew no 
bounds. The awful ravages of plague were 
added to the horrors of war, and enormous num- 
bers of Jews in Cracow, Posen, Lublin and 
Kalish perished either by the sword or by dis- 
ease. 

By 1658 the country had just begun to re- 
build order out of the chaos wrought by the war. 


256 THe JEwSIN RvuSSIA AND POLAND 


Polish Jewry, contemplating the losses sus- 
tained during that terrible decade (1648-58), 
was appalled at the total which, according to 
the chroniclers, reached over half a million. 
About seven hundred communities lay devas- 
tated, and in Russian Ukraine they had disap- 
peared altogether. In ‘the Polish Ukraine only 
a tenth of the former Jewish population sur- 
vived. The rest either met death at the hands 
of the Cossacks, or were taken prisoners by 
Tartars if they had not fled to Turkey or other 
countries in Western Europe. Jewish refugees 
were to be met in every part of Europe and 
Asia at that time, and everywhere they told 
pitiful tales of the calamities which had befallen 
their brethren and of the hundreds of martyrs, 
until their listeners shuddered with horror. 

The contemporary chronicles and the mourn- 
ful chants sung in the synagogues at that period, 
reflected the torture of the Jewish people under 
the unspeakable disasters through which they 
were living. Nathan Hanover, an eye-witness 
of the Ukrainian massacre, describes it in his 
masterly history, the Yeven Metzula (1658). 
The rabbis sent new prayers to the synagogues 
to be read in memory of the new martyrs, and 
the anguish of the people poured forth in des- 
perate, heart-rending supplications to Heaven. 


OUTLINE or JEwisu History 257 
§ 53. 
Poland’s Decline. 


After the Cossack wars, the kingdom of 
Poland began gradually to decline. Its return 
to power under the heroic Jan Sobieski (1674- 
96), who showed marked favor towards the 
Jews, was but a dying flash. During the reigns 
of the Saxon kings, August II and August IIT, 
the kingdom again lost ground, owing to their 
misrule and the over-taxing of the country’s 
resources for the prosecution of their unsuccess- 
ful wars. 

The treatment of the Jews went from bad 
to worse. The government pursued its sole aim 
of extracting money out of them to their last 
penny by means of taxation; the municipal 
governments and artisans’ guilds restricted them 
in the matter of free choice of trades and com- 
mercial activity; the nobles, as members of the 
Diet restricted their civil rights; the Jesuits in 
the schools filled the hearts of young Polish 
children with contempt for the alien race and 
religion in their midst. 

Mobs of rough Polish school-boys would at- 
tack and beat defenceless Jews in the streets, 
and sometimes even force their way into the 
Jewish quarters where they started riots. This 
occurred in Posen, Lvoff, Vilna and other cities. 
In order to protect their members against these 


258 Tre JEws in Russia AND POLAND 


“school-boy raids,” the Jewish communities in 
the larger cities paid an annual tribute to the 
heads of the Catholic schools in return for their 
restraining the excesses of their pupils. 

Humiliated on every side, the Jew found 
sanctuary only within his community, within the 
Kahal. The strength of this council was 
strengthened by the Polish government which 
refused to have any dealings with individual 
Jews but only with the Kahal which collected 
each man’s taxes and paid the whole sum into 
the state exchequer. The Kahal stood responsi- 
ble to the government for every misdeed of 
which any Jew was guilty, and owing to all 
these circumstances, the council’s power in the 
community became almost boundless. It served 
a very valuable purpose in uniting all the Jews 
and protecting their interests, but on the other 
hand many Kahals abused the power vested in 
them. In certain cases their tax-administration 
was exceedingly unjust, and sometimes they 
were known to wrong the poor to please the rich 
and to interfere with the personal liberty of 
members of the community. 

The calamities they endured left an indeli- 
ble mark on the spiritual life of the Polish 
Jews. In the Ukraine in Podolia and Volhy- 
nia, where the Cossack rebellion had taken its 
cruelest toll, the intellectual level of the people 
sank lower and lower. Talmudic learning in 


OUTLINE oF JEwisuH History 259 


which hitherto all classes had participated, be- 
came the occupation of a small group of “book- 
men,” while ignorance and superstition filled the 
minds of the poverty-stricken masses. In Lith- 
uania and the Polish crown-lands, rabbinical 
science did not lose its hold so soon upon the 
people at large, though even there a perceptible 
slackening of intellectual activity immediately 
set in. The single hopeful exception to this 
universal decline was the appearance of a book 
of history written by the rabbi of Minsk, Jehiel 
Halperin. This work, entitled “The Order of 
Generations” (Seder Hadoroth, 1700), falls 
into three parts. Tracing the events of Jew- 
ish history from Bibilical times to 1696, it opens 
with an enumeration in alphabetical order of © 
the names of all the tanaim and amoraim (Part 
I), together with their sayings or rulings as 
contained in the Talmud (Part II), and con- 
cludes with a list of post-Talmudic writers and 
their works. 


As interest in rabbinical learning grew weak- 
er, preoccupation with the “secret learning” or 
Cabala increased. The teachings of the Pales- 
tinian Cabalists, Ari and Vital, found many dis- 
ciples in Polish Jewry, while more and more 
books were published dealing with life beyond 
the grave, with angels and demons, heaven 
and hell. Miuracle-workers followed, claiming 
the power to cure diseases of mind and body by 


260 TuEeJEWSIN RussIA AND POLAND 


means of mysterious incantations and talismans. 
A contemporary writer says “In no other land 
ean the Jews so concern themselves with Cabal- 
ist nonsense, devils, talismans and _ spirit-invok- 
ing as in Poland.” 


§ 54, 
Sabbatians and Frankists. 


Sabbati Zevi’s Messianic movement followed 
upon the horrors of the Cossack massacres in 
Poland. In the midst of thew suffering the 
Polish Jews heard with fierce hope the rumors 
from Turkey, telling of the exploits of the 
pretended Messiah. In many places they even 
made all their preparations for immediate de- 
parture to the Promised Land. Nor did the 
popular enthusiasm for the movement diminish 
when the false savior renounced his faith, caus- 
ing all pious men, rabbis and laymen to shrink 
from him in horror. Groups of “secret Sabbat- 
jans’ were formed in Podolia and Volhynia; 
they were called “followers of Shabsi-Zevi” or 
more shortly, “the Snabses.”” Many of the tra- 
ditional religious rituals were ignored by them, 
and they turned the Ninth of Ab from a fast- 
day into one of feasting in honor of the so-— 
called Messiah’s birthday. Certain branches of 
the sect gave up their lives to fasting and do- 
ing penance, others passed their nights and lays 
in merrymaking and depraved practises. So 


OUTLINE OF JEwisH History 261 


rapidly did this dangerous heresy threaten to 
spread, that the frightened rabbis resorted to 
drastic measures for its suppression. In the 
summer of 1792, accordingly, the rabbinical 
synod at Lvov called down the “herem” or 
“pronouncement of excommunication” upon all 
secret Sabbatians refusing, after a given time of 
grace, to recant their false doctrines. This 
move met with some success; a good many 
members of the sect made public confession of 
their sins and performed the necessary deeds 
of expiation. But the majority clung to their 
heresy, and in 1725 the rabbis had no choice 
but to use the “herem” against them. 

Jacob Frank, the founder of another sect, was 
born and brought up amidst the secret Sabbati- 
ans, in Podolia (1726). Leib, his father, had 
been expelled from the Jewish community on 
account of his connection with the Shabses, and 
had gone to live in the neighboring country of 
Wallachia, then a Turkish province. Jacob’s 
first occupation was as clerk in a shop, and 
later on he became an itinerant merchant, go- 
ing into towns and villages with his wares. His 
route took him from time to time into the cities 
of Turkey and he often found himself in Salon- 
ika, the centre of Sabbatianism. There he came 
into contact with the leaders of the sect from 
whom he learnt all that was most desirable in 
their teachings. At last he conceived the idea 


262 TueJEws In RvssiIA AND POLAND 


that much might be gained by returning to 
Poland, and appearing before the Sabbatians 
there as a prophet. In this course, Frank was 
actuated less by religious zeal than by personal 
ambition and an adventurous spirit. 


He made his entry into Podolia in 1755, and 
joined the leaders of the local Shabses to whom 
he communicated the revelations which had been 
vouchsafed to him by the Messiah’s successors 
in Salonika. Secret meetings were arranged 
at which strange rites were performed by the 
members. One day during a fair in the town 
of Lanzcorona, Frank and a large crowd of his 
followers gathered at an inn to hold the services 
of their religion. ‘They sang hymns and stirred 
their pious enthusiasm up to the highest point 
by means of revelry and dancing, men and 
women together. ‘The Sabbatians’ scandalous 
conduct horrified the orthodox Jews attending 
the fair, and resulted in a report being car- 
ried to the local authorities that a Turkish sub- 
ject was in the town, inflaming the emotions of | 
the people in order to convert them to a new 
religion. The gay assembly was put under ar- 
rest. Erank, as a foreigner, was deported back 
to where he had come from and the rest were 
delivered over to the rabbis and officials of the 
Kahal. The rabbinical synod at Brody pro- 
claimed a strict “herem” against all Frank’s fol- 
lowers, ostracizing them from the Jewish com- 


OUTLINE oF JEwIsH History 263 


munity and making it the duty of every true 
son of Israel to hunt down every member of the 
dangerous sect until the heresy was stamped 
out. 


The persecuted heretics of Podolia resorted to 
desperate measures against the rabbis. A dele- 
gation of their members appeared before the 
Catholic bishop, Dembovski, at Kamenetz-Po- 
dolsk and declared that their sect repudiated 
the Talmud and recognized only the Zohar, the 
holy book of the Cabala. Like the Christians, 
they believed in One God in three persons, of 
whom the Redeemer or Messiah was one. This 
declaration filled the bishop with hopes of con- 
verting the Sabbatians to Christianity. He took 
the “anti-Talmudists” (as the Frankists called 
themselves) under his special protection, and 
challenged the rabbis of Podolia to meet them 
in open debate in Kamenetz. This event took 
place in 1757, in the presence of Dembovski and 
other Catholic priests. The rabbis’ attempted 
refutation of their opponents’ arguments and 
exposure of the falsehoods they disseminated 
proved unsuccessful; the bishop ruled that the 
“anti-Talmudists” were right, and ordered the 
defeated rabbis to pay the Frankists a fine. In 
addition to this, he caused all copies of the Tal- 
mud owned by the Jews of Podolia to be seized 
and destroyed. ‘Thousands of volumes were car- 
ried away to Kamenetz and burned in the pub- 


264 Tur JEws in Russia AND POLAND 


lic square, amidst the jubilations of the sectari- 
ans, whose revenge upon their enemies was 
thereby made complete. It is impossible to say 
what the upshot of this affair would have been 
had not Bishop Dembovski died suddenly just 
then, depriving the Frankists of their only pro- 
tector and leaving them exposed to the persecu- 
tions of the Kahal. 

Matters were at this stage when Jacob Frank 
returned from Turkey. He soon realized the 
desperate plight into which his followers had 
fallen through having renounced their Judaism 
without becoming proper Christians, and ad- 
vised them to pretend to be Christians, at least 
for the time being. “Just as Sabbatai Zevi and 
his people embraced Islam to mere outward ap- 
pearance only,” he argued, “so may his Polish 
followers feign acceptance of Christianity.” In 
their hearts, however, they were to go on be- 
heving that Sabbatai Zevi or Jacob Frank, his 
representative on earth, and not Jesus, was the 
true Messiah. 

Thus in 1759 the Frankists made known to 
the Catholic clergy their intention of joining the 
church. ‘They were received with open arms. 
Solemn ceremonies of baptism were held in the 
churches of Livof, and Polish nobles stood god- 
fathers to the new converts, bestowing their own 
names upon them and thereby admitting them 
into the ranks of the aristocracy of the land. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH Histrory 265 


Frank himself was baptized at Warsaw, and 
King August III himself was his godfather. 
The ceremony was attended by ministers, cour- 
tiers and members of the most illustrious society 
of the capital. He was given the baptismal 
name of Joseph. 


But the Frankists could not keep up the ap- 
pearance of conversion for very long. It was 
noticed by the Polish clergy that the new Cath- 
olics were secretly practising their old rites, and 
betrayals from various sources soon brought the 
whole scheme of deception to light. The Frank- 
ists were shown to have merely pretended to 
accept the church in order to save themselves 
from ruin, whereas they had in reality never 
ceased to regard Frank as their “Holy Lord” 
and the successor of Sabbatai Zevi. Frank was 
thereupon arrested and tried before an ecclesi- 
astical tribunal, and his judges, the highest au- 
thorities of the Church, sentenced him to impri- 
sonment in the fortress of Chenstokhov. This 
stronghold adjoined the local monastery and 
was connected with it, and it was thought that 
this circumstance would ensure his complete dis- 
appearance so far as his followers were con- 
cerned. The hopes of Franks’ judges were how- 
ever not realized, for though he remained in the 
prison for thirteen years (1760-73), his adher- 
ents contrived to keep in communication with 
him all the time. Some settled in Chens- 


266 THEJEWSIN RwSSIA AND POLAND 


tokhov or its suburbs where they formed 
a close secret sect, and they looked upon their 
“Holy Lord” as enduring the same fate as had 
befallen the “suffering Messiah” Sabbatai, who 
had also been imprisoned in Abydos. Frank 
did his best to keep up his people’s faith by 
speeches and messages. He would tell them 
that only through the “religion of Edom” could 
salvation be attained, by which religion he meant 
the extraordinary miscellany of Christian and 
Sabbatian ideas which formed his peculiar creed. 


Frank was at last set free when Poland was 
first divided (1772), Chenstokhov being sur- 
rendered a little later to the Russian troops. 
Accompanied by a great number of his faith- 
ful followers, he left Poland and went into 
Moravia. There, and later on in Austria, he 
presented himself amidst the Jews as a Chris- 
tian missionary, and in that role he even insinu- 
ated himself into the favor of the Viennese 
court. His success was shortlived however, for 
it was not long before someone exposed his past 
and he was forced to leave Austria immediately. 

Establishing himself finally in Offenbach, 
Germany, Frank took the title of “Baron von | 
Offenbach.” With his daughter Eva, called the 
“Holy Lady,” he became the leader of a secret 
group of his sect, and lived in great luxury on 
the money he received from his Polish and Mo- 
ravian disciples. After his death in 1791 the 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 267 


sect began to break up. Such of the members 
as remained in Poland gradually mixed with 
the native Catholics and in time became one 
with the rest of Polish society, losing their in- 
tegrity altogether. 


CHAPTER X 


Tuer TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


§ 55. 
Moses Mendelsohn. 


HE second half of the XVIIIth cen- 
tury was a period of transition for the 
Jews, during which the old order of 
their lives gave place to the new. A 
liberal movement towards the emanci- 

pation of people’s minds from the bondage of 
inherited medieval prejudice, was making 
great headway amongst the educated classes 
throughout Western Europe. A school of writ- 
ers sprang up in France who demanded liberty 
of thought and of conscience for all, however 
widely the ideas of the individual might diverge 
from those accepted by the majority. (Vol- 
taire, Diderot, Rousseau and the Encycloped- 
ists.) ‘These radical Frenchmen’s views became 
very popular in Germany, and amongst their 
admirers was no less a personage than Freder- 
ick II, King of Prussia, himself, who was fond 
of declaring how free his subjects were to save 
their souls according to whatever creed they 
chose. 





268 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 269 


In practice, unfortunately, Frederick made 
no attempt to alleviate the sorry condition of 
his many thousand Jewish subjects, but kept 
them without civil rights and granted the privi- 
lege of residence in Prussia only to such wealthy 
merchants as could afford to pay the heavy 
taxes imposed upon them. A small Jewish 
community existed in Berlin, the Prussian cap- 
ital, and a ban was placed upon all would-be 
immigrants of small means who desired to make 
their home in the capital. They contrived to 
make their way there secretly, nevertheless, and 
one poor youth who got in by stealth lived to 
become the glory of his own people and of the 
whole of Germany. This youth was Moses 
Mendelsohn. 


He was born in Dessau in 1728, the son of a 
poor copyist of Biblical scrolls for the syna- 
gogue, named Mendel. Under his father he 
studied Hebrew and the Bible, and the local 
Rabbi, David Frankel was his tutor in the Tal- 
mud. The boy’s chief delight was in studying, 
and when his teacher Frankel was invited to 
become the rabbi in Berlin, young Moses fol- 
lowed him thither, being then only fourteen 
years of age. In his Berlin attic, he suffered 
great privations, but pursued his studies no less 
diligently for that. The spirit of free thought 
within him was aroused by his acquaintance with 
the philosophy of Maimonides. Jack of nour- 


270 THE TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


ishment combined with excessive mental activity 
completely undermined the boy’s constitution, 
and his wholly sedentary life at last caused 
curvature of the spine, so that he became a 
hunchback for life. But he was utterly indif- 
ferent to physical suffering; he had interest only 
for the concerns of the mind, and there he was 
insatiable. He desired to add philosophy and 
secular sciences to his store of knowledge, al- 
though these subjects were at that time thought 
superfluous for a Jewish youth, if not danger- 
ous. He plunged into the study of mathematics, 
Latin and modern languages, and soon began 
to read French and German literature. It 
was not long before he obtained employment as 
tutor in the home of a wealthy Jewish manufac- 
turer, from which position he was later on trans- 
ferred to that of superintendent of his patron’s 
office. His material situation thus well estab- 
lished, he was at leisure to devote all his spare 
time to the intellectual pursuits he so ardently 
enjoyed. 

Mendelsohn’s meeting with the great German 
poet, Lessing, in 1754, was the turning point 
in his career. Lessing, who in one of his earli- | 
est dramas, “The Jews,” had condemned his 
countrymen’s prejudice against the Hebrew 
race, encountered in Moses Mendelsohn one of 
that race’s noblest representatives. The two 
young men were immediately drawn towards 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 271 


each other by the similarity of their ambitions, 
and under the influence of their intimate friend- 
ship, both these thinkers found their minds ex- 
panding. They were kindred spirits. Lessing 
introduced Mendelsohn into the cultured cir- 
cle of his Christian friends, thereby laying the 
foundation of his literary fame. 


One day Mendelsohn gave Lessing the manu- 
script of his “Philosophical Discourses’ for crit- 
icism, and Lessing had it published without the 
author’s knowledge. ‘The book was a popular 
success on account of the clarity of its thought 
and its beautiful style. The young philosopher 
added to his renown with his next work, “Phae- 
don,” which was an attempt, in the form of dis- 
courses between the Greek Sage, Socrates, and 
Phaedon, his disciple, to prove the immortality 
of the soul. Men of education read it eagerly, 
and Mendelsohn found his praises on every 
tongue. He was acclaimed as one of the great- 
est writers in Germany. His acquaintance was 
sought by the most famous authors of the day, 
and his home became the rendezvous of the in- 
tellectual élite of the capital. There, all moot 
problems of philosophy and ethics which so pro- 
foundly occupied the minds of his generation, 
were debated with ardor, and Mendelsohn came 
to be called the Jewish Socrates. 


From his place of eminence in German soci- 
ety, he was not unmindful of his own people’s 


272 Tuer TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


welfare. If he devoted his earlier years to gen- 
eral philosophy, all his later life was dedicated 
to the task of strengthening and rehabilitating 
Judaism. The following incident led to his tak- 
ing up thus passionately the fight for his reli- 
gion: 

Among Mendelsohn’s friends was Lavater, 
the famous preacher, who greatly desired to 
convert the Jewish thinker to Christianity. In 
dedicating his book “On the Proofs of the Truth 
of Christianity” to Mendelsohn, he challenged 
him to refute his contentions, and if he failed, to 
turn Christian. ‘This defiance aroused Mendel- 
sohn’s indignation, and in his reply, “The Mes- 
sage of Lavater,” he probably declared himself 
a Jew once and for all time, saying that that 
religion alone he sincerely believed to be ra- 
tional and divine. At the same time he ex- 
pressed his contempt for the dishonesty of any 
man who would betray his religion or induce 
others to change theirs. 

But Mendelsohn’s main ambition was not the 
defence of Jews in the eyes of the outside 
world, so much as the restoration of their creed 
from within and he sought for a means whereby 
it could link up with the course of progress 
throughout Europe. Like Maimonides, he 
wanted to widen his people’s intellectual horizon 
and reconcile the religious doctrines with the 
truths of secular philosophy. He realized that 


OUTLINE OF JEwisH History 2738 


the Talmudic training led its students astray 
from the true foundations on which their reli- 
gion had been built and which were to be 
found in the Bible alone. ‘The rabbis’ distorted 
interpretations obscured the sense of the divine 
book, and therefore, like Luther before him, he 
began his people’s re-education by translating 
the Bible for them. He turned the Penta- 
teuch, or Torah, into German, keeping strictly 
to the spirit of the original, and later on, in 
collaboration with other scholars, he wrote the 
Biur, a model commentary in Hebrew upon the 
Pentateuch, based on the grammatical and log- 
ical sense of the Biblical text, unadulterated 
with any artificial sophistries in the manner of 
the other commentators. 


Published in 1783, Mendelsohn’s ‘Torah’ 
was received with enthusiasm by all the pro- 
gressive lovers of learning, and with indignation 
by the reactionary orthodox rabbis who re- 
garded it as a piece of dangerous heresy. All 
the rabbis of Germany published heated pro- 
tests against the “Berliners,” as they called 
Mendelsohn and his friends, and declared the 
new edition of the Bible an impious and heretical 
work, ordering its instant destruction. But their 
persecution of the book only helped to make it 
successful, and the Berlin Bible became the 
fountain of knowledge for many a young Jew- 
ish seeker after truth. They studied it in secret 


274 Tue TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


and found in it a means towards learning the 
rules of pure Biblical writing, and towards a 
real knowledge of Biblical poetry and history. 
Eager searchers after truth learnt the German 
language through Mendelsohn’s version of the 
Bible, and procured thereby the key which un- 
locked for them the treasury of German litera- 
ture and secular philosophy and science. A new 
edition of the Psalms and other Biblical books 
followed the translation of the Pentateuch, and 
the rest were turned into German later on by 
Mendelsohn’s disciples. 


In “Jerusalem,” one of the great sage’s last 
works, written in German, he tried to show how 
rational learning combined with the observance 
of moral and national laws, and not blind faith, 
was what Judaism really required of its adher- 
ents. This book was hailed by Kant as the 
beginning of a general religious reform. Less- 
ing, in his drama, “Nathan the Wise,” had 
used his friend Mendelsohn as the prototype of 
his noble hero. 


Mendelsohn’s life was short, but crowded with 
great achievements. He died in 1786, and many | 
friends and admirers of his genius mourned his 
untimely end. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HisToRY 275 


§ 56. 


The School of Mendelsohn—the Struggle for 
Education. 


Mendelsohn was of those writers and think- 
ers whose influence upon their generation is ex- 
ercised as much by their charm of personality 
and greatness of character as by their written 
works. Mendelsohn, as leader of a group, was 
far more important than as an author; he had 
the gift of inspiring his friends and disciples, 
and of inflaming them with the desire to labor 
for the common good. 


The task undertaken by the “Mendelsohn cir- 
cle” was two-fold, being on the one hand the 
reform of Jewish school-systems and on the 
other, the regeneration of Hebrew literature. 
These aims were well on the way towards ac- 
complishment before the leader’s death. In 
1778 his friend and colleague, David Fried- 
lander, brought about the foundation of the 
first “free Jewish school” in Berlin, where gen- 
eral subjects, Hebrew grammar and the Bible 
were taught in German. ‘This new school was 
intended to do away with the evils of the old 
*““Kheder” system of education which was con- 
cerned exclusively with the narrow training af- 
forded by Talmudic study. 

Hand in hand with the education of the 
young in the new schools, went the re-educa- 


276 THE TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


tion of their elders through the study of litera- 
ture. The incorrect rabbinical language in 
which scientific books had been written had to 
be revised, and the pure language of Biblical 
Hebrew reéstablished. To this end Mendel- 
sohn’s disciples founded the “Union of Lovers 
of Hebrew’ in Berlin (1783), under whose 
auspices a journal called the “Collector” 
(Measeph) was published. This magazine con- 
tained lyrical and didactic poems in Hebrew, 
scientific articles, articles on Hebrew grammar 
and the literature of the Bible, and translations 
of the finest examples of French and German 
letters. It bore a great resemblance to the 
young-folks’ magazines of our own day, and it 
was precisely to this fact that it owed its popular | 
success. Kichel, Wessely, Friedlander and other — 
disciples of Mendelsohn were the chief contrib- 

utors. | 


One of Mendelsohn’s most famous colleagues 
was Naphtali-Herz Wessely of Hamburg, a 
prolific writer who contributed much to Mendel- 
sohn’s commentary, the “Biur” (1726-1805). 
Before that, however, he had attracted some 
attention as the author of a remarkable mono- 
graph on the philology of the Bible, which work 
he had followed by others, chiefly articles and 
poems in “The Collector.” Wessely wrote in 
the new Hebrew, unlike Mendelsohn who used 
German almost exclusively. His long poem, the 


OvuTLINE oF JEwisH History OTG: 


“Moseiad” (Shire Tiphereth) describes the ca- 
reer of Moses and the exodus from Egypt in 
powerful Biblical verse such as had not been 
seen in Hebrew poetry for many a long year. 
His greatest renown, however, he earned as the 
fighter of the reactionary rabbis who hindered 
by all the means at their disposal the new educa- 
tion in Austria. 

The enlightened Joseph II, who reigned at 
that time over the Austrian Empire, made stren- 
uous attempts to improve the condition of his 
Jewish subjects, and issued an edict ordering . 
the establishment of elementary schools for Jew- 
ish children where general subjects and the Ger- 
man language were to be taught. This edict 
greatly alarmed the Jews of Austria, Bohemia 
and Polish Galicia, which country had lately 
been annexed to the Austrian Empire. The 
pious mass of the Jewish people, encouraged 
by their spiritual leaders, feared that these sec- 
ular schools would lure the scholars away from 
the study of the religious law and the Talmud. 

The ‘“‘Lovers of Education” on their side, wel- 
comed the emperor’s edict as the beginning of 
a brighter era in the life of their people. Wes- 
sely wrote a panegyric in praise of the “Em- 
peror and Liberator.” When he learnt of the 
dissatisfaction of the rabbis over the very re- 
forms which were filling his party with joy, he 
sent a message to the Jewish communities in 


278 Tue TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


Austria, which he published in Berlin in 1782 
under the title of “Words of Peace and Truth” 
(Dibre sholo mve-emmeth). In this message 
he implored all his fellow-Jews to accept the 
beneficent edict of Joseph II with the enthu- 
siasm it deserved, and tried to make them see 
that even from the standpoint of religion, every 
Jew ought to be compelled to know the lan- 
guage of the empire in which he lived, and to 
receive a general education, without which it 
was impossible to understand either the con- 
tents of the Talmud or the spirit of Judaism in | 
general, both demanding a certain knowledge 
of natural science, history and geography. 


Wessely’s message found no favor except in 
the community in Trieste where Italian Jews 
made up most of the members; everywhere else 
it raised a veritable storm of indignation in the 
conservative camps. Jezekiel Landau, the chief 
rabbi of Prague, one of the most ardent defend- 
ers of the old order, condemned the “heretics” 
in the synagogue, pouring out upon them the 
most passionate denunciations. The friends of 
education found themselves seriously at war} 
they were excommunicated from Jewry and 
publicly cursed in the synagogues. In the city 
of Lissa Wessely’s message was burned in the 
presence of all the people. Thereupon he wrote 
a second message in which he defended himself 
against the charge of heresy, and made another 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 279 


attempt to prove his contention that general 
education and religion were not incompatible. 
The effect of this latter message was that at- 
tacks upon Wessely personally ceased, but the 
struggle between the friends and foes of the 
new education was not to end for many years. 


§ 57. 
The Haidamaks and the Partition of Poland. 


While Western Europe stood at the threshold 
of a new life, Poland was in the throes of the 
long-standing disorder which brought about its 
final ruin. During the reign of Stanislav Au- 
gust (1764), the last king, this ancient mon- 
archy fell into a state of dependency on her 
powerful neighbors, more especially upon Rus- 
sia. Chaos increased as the conflicts raged more 
bitterly between class and class and religion 
and religion. The rights hitherto enjoyed by 
the Jews and “dissenters,” which classification 
included all non-Roman Catholic Christians, | 
were withdrawn one after the other. 

Nowhere were the Jews in a more lamentable 
condition than in Podolia, Volhynia and the 
districts of the Ukraine which had remained un- 
der the sway of Poland. As in the past, the 
unhappy people in those parts, found them- 
selves once more crushed between the two mill- 
stones of the harsh and despotic Polish nobles 


280 Tue TRANSITION PERION—1750-1795. 


above and the enslaved Russian peasants be- 
low them. Once more, as in the days of Khmel- 
nitzki, unrest was seething amongst the peas- 
ants, and during the first half of the XVIIIth 
century run-away serfs were again joining the 
Cossacks of the Russian Ukraine and the Zapo- 
rozhtsi (Cossacks from beyond the Dnieper), 
forming themselves into bands of “Haidamaks,” 
fearless bandits roving from place to place on 
their nefarious business. They raided and laid 
waste the estates of the Polish noblemen as well 
as small Jewish towns. At first the raids oc- 
curred but spasmodically and not very often, 
but as time went on they became more and more 
frequent and organized, until they assumed the 
terrible importance of a great popular uprising. 
The storm broke in 1768. 


Poland and Russia had come into conflict 
over the Greek-Catholic population in Poland. 
Russia demanded that this section of the peo- 
ple should enjoy equal rights with the Roman 
Catholics, but the Roman clergy threw all their 
weight into the balance against this plan of 
emancipation. On its side, the Greek Church 
made an attempt to incite a rebellion in the - 
Russian Ukraine. A forged edict, purporting 
to have come from the Empress Catherine II 
of Russia, ordered the annihilation of Poles and 
Jews throughout that part of the country, 
whereupon a new Haidamak movement sprang 


OUTLINE OF JEwisH History 281 


into life, led by a Zaporozhian Cossack and 
Zhelezniak. 


Bands of the rioters ranged over the province, 
within the boundaries of what is now the Gov- 
ernment of Kieff. Jews and Polish nobles per- 
ished at their hands, as they overran small towns 
and great estates at will. Often the Haidamaks 
would hang a Pole, a Jew and a dead dog to 
the same tree with the inscription “A Lakh 
(Pole), a Zhyd (Jew) and a dog—they are all 
of one faith.” After having massacred and 
robbed the Jews thus in several towns, Zhelez- 
niak led his bandits upon the city of Uman, 
whither more than ten thousand Poles and Jews 
had fled for refuge at the first rumors of the 
uprising. When the Polish governor of Uman 
received the news of the Haidamaks’ approach, 
he sent his Cossack troops to meet them. But 
the governor’s army was led by Gonta, himself 
a Greek-Catholic Cossack, and he betrayed the 
Poles and joined Zhelezniak instead of stopping 
his progress towards the city. On the 18th of 
June, 1768, the allies marched on Uman, which 
at first put up a brave defence. Poles and Jews 
labored side by side on the city walls, pouring 
shot from guns and cannon upon the invaders, 
but they could not save themselves. The Haida- 
maks forced their way in, and instantly attacked 
the Jews who fled in panic before them through 
the streets. They met the most brutal deaths, 


282 Tue TRANS/TION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


They were trampled under the hoofs of horses 
and thrown from the roofs of tall buildings; 
children were impaled on the points of bayonets 
and women were put to ruthless torture. About 
three thousand Jews had barricaded themselves 
inside a large synagogue, but the Haidamaks 
set a cannon against the door and blew it to 
fragments, after which they rushed inside and 
turned the sanctuary into a shambles. 

Having disposed of the Jews, the blood- 
thirsty horde turned their attention to the 
Poles. They slew many in the church, and 
the governor and other dignitaries were not 
spared. The streets of Uman were strewn with 
corpses and with maimed men and women left 
for dead; in all some twenty thousand Poles 
and Jews together perished in the Uman mas- 
sacre. 


Meanwhile, in other districts of Kieff and 
Podolia, such as F'astov, Tulchin and elsewhere, 
smaller Haidamak bands, reinforced by the lo- 
cal peasantry, were exterminating the Polish 
nobles and the Jews. Once more Jewish blood 
flowed upon the ground where the hordes of 
Khmelnitzki had passed in by-gone years, and ~ 
air resounded with the groans of martyrs. This 
time, however, the massacres did not last long. 
The Polish and Russian soldiery lost no time in 
suppressing the Haidamaks, and soon after the 
Uman invasion both Gonta and Zhelezniak were 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 283 


captured. The former was surrendered with his 
band to the Polish government, and they all suf- 
fered hideous retribution for their treachery; the 
leader was skinned alive and then quartered. 

Poland disintegrated very quickly and little 
by little was divided among the countries on its 
borders. Three times, beginning in 1772, the 
Polish dominions were redistributed among 
themselves by Russia, Austria and Prussia in 
council. The last partition of Poland occurred 
in 1795 when Russia received White Russia, 
Lithuania, Volhynia and Podolia; Austria, Ga- 
licia or Red Russia; and Prussia, Pomerania 
and the province of Posen. Within two dec- 
ades, of the vast population of Polish Jews, the 
majority had become Russian, and the rest 
Austrian or Prussian subjects. 


§ 58. 
The Jews in Russia Under Peter I. 


The Tsars of Old, or Muscovite, Russia, per- 
sisted in their stubborn refusal to admit Jews 
into their dominions. ‘The Russians of that 
period did not like any foreigners at all, least 
of all the Jews who, as non-Christians, had in- 
troduced the heresy of the “Judaists’” into their 
country many years before. Jewish merchants 
in Russia on business from Poland and Lithu- 
ania might stay there for a while, but were not 
allowed to settle permanently. 


284 Tuer TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


When Ivan the Terrible captured the city of 
Polotzk from the Poles, he gave orders to bap- 
tize all the Jews or drown them in the Dvina 
(1563). Tsar Alexis Mikailovitch banished 
them even from the Lithuanian and White-Rus- 
sian cities which his troops were only tempo- 
rarily occupying. (See § 52.) Nor were they 
allowed to settle in the Ukrainian provinces 
which the Russian kingdom had just annexed. 
It was not until the reign of Peter the Great 
and his successors that great masses of Jews 
began to penetrate into the Russian provinces 
on the Polish borders, more especially into Lit- 
tle Russia. 


Peter would not have them molested, but dur- 
ing the reign of Catherine I an edict of expui- 
sion was issued, and all the Jews who had 
settled in Little Russia were forced over the 
frontier back into Poland (1727). In spite of 
the interdictions, Jewish merchants still went 
into Russia on business, and in 1743 the Senate 
petitioned the Empress Elizabeth Petrovna to 
allow them back at least temporarily, on the 
grounds of their commercial value to the prov- 
inces in which they pursued their activities. The 
empress returned the petition with the follow- 
ing reply written across it: “From the enemies 
of Christ I desire no. profit.” It so happened, 
however, that vast numbers of Polish Jews be- 
came the subjects of Russia notwithstanding, 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH History 285 


for the final partition of Poland brought many 
Polish provinces under the rule of the Russian 
empire. 

The attitude adopted by the Empress Cathe- 
rine II towards her new Jewish subjects hesi- 
tated between opposite extremes. On the score 
of their usefulness in the development of indus- 
try, she gave them the right to settle in New 
Russia, the recently annexed provinces, which 
were as yet very sparsely populated. Russia 
proper, or Great Russia, was still prohibited 
ground to them. The government promised 
them the same rights and privileges they had 
enjoyed before their provinces were annexed, 
but as a matter of fact, their situation grew 
steadily worse. In the cities their commercial 
rights were circumscribed and their taxes con- 
tinually increased. In 1794 a new order im- 
posed a tax upon Jews registered as members 
of the burgher and merchant class, twice as 
great as the corresponding tax paid by Chris- 
tians. Only the Karaite Jews were exempted 
under a special charter which did not apply to 
the Rabbinists. For no reason but that they 
belonged to a particular race and adhered to a 
particular religion, the Jews found themselves 
impeded at every turn by the Muscovite gov- 
ernment’s legislation against them. ‘They were 
not recognized as real citizens and their civil 


286 THE TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


rights were greatly restricted. Much the same 
state of things exists in Russia to this day.* 


§ 59. 
Israel Besht and Hassidism. 


Parallel with the political transition period 
when the Polish Jews gradually became the sub- 
jects of Russia, a religious movement of far- 
reaching importance began to evolve, differing 
from both the old Rabbinism and the new “Ber- 
lin” system of education. The masses could no 
longer accept Rabbinism with its insistence on — 
Talmudic learning and rigid observance of ex- 
ternal rituals. Book-learning was not within 
the reach of the great majority, who exhausted 
all their energy in the struggle for their daily 
bread, and those whose piety was more than 
skin-deep found no satisfaction in the perfunc- 
tory performance of a multitude of mere cere- 
monies. Discontent of this nature had formerly 
gone to swell the ranks of Sabbatians and 
Frankists, but when these two sects renounced 
Judaism altogether a new doctrine came into be- 
ing which touched the trouble nearer its source 
and was far better adapted to the long-felt reli- 
gious needs of the period. ‘This was the “doc- 
trine of piety” or Hassidism, whose founder was 
a humble Jew of Podolia named Israel Besht. 





*Up to the Russian Revolution of 1917. (Translator’s 
Note.) 


OUTLINE oF JEwisH History 287 


Israel Besht was born in Podolia about 1700, ° 
into a very poor family. He lost his parents at 
a very early age and was cared for by charitable 
townsfolk who sent him to the Kheder to study 
the Talmud. But the monotonous routine of 
school irked the boy who was by nature a 
dreamer, and he would often play truant. Many 
a time he was found straying in the woods all 
by himself, absorbed in his own thoughts. At 
thirteen he became an assistant or “behelfer” in 
the Kheder, and later he was appointed sexton 
of the synagogue. It was at that period that 
his behavior took a strange turn; he slept, or 
pretended to, by day and at night when the 
synagogue was deserted he would pore over 
books or pass long hours in fervent prayer. 
The mysteries of the Cabala took hold of his 
mind, and he took to studying the “writings of 
Ari.” He also began to acquire the art of per- 
forming “miracles” by means of Cabalistic in- 
cantations. 


After his marriage, Israel settled in a village 
in the Carpathian mountains, which he after- 
wards left to live in the Galician city of Tlusta. 
It was there, according to the Hessidic legends, 
that he prepared himself for his future career. 
When he was thirty-six years of age, he an- 
nounced himself publicly as a “Baal-shem,” or 
miracle worker. ‘There were a great many of 
these Cabalist conjurors at that time, all claim- 


988 Tur Transtrion PER1Iop—1750-1795. 


ing the power of curing diseases by incantations, 
magic formulas, amulets and medicinal herbs. 
Israel Baal-Shem employed these agencies like 
his colleagues, but at the same time, he tried to 
effect cures through prayer as well, which he 
offered up with much shouting and strange ges- 
ture. Whenever he was called upon to foretell 
the future, he would open the Zohar at random 
and make his prediction according to its dic- 
tates. Very soon he became known to all the 
people as a saint and miracle-worker, and they 
nicknamed him “the good Baal-Shem” (Baal- 
Shem Tov) or Besht, for short. 


His reputation in this capacity thus estab- 
lished, Besht took up the teaching of religion. 
He travelled all over Podolia and Volhynia, 
healing and preaching. He made his home in 
Medzhibozh, a small Podolian town, and peo- 
ple came to him there from far and wide, to 
see him with their own eyes and listen to his 
sage discourses. Besht preached that true sal-— 
vation lay in sincere devotion to God, in sim- 
ple, unquestioning faith and ardent prayer, 
rather than in Talmudic learning. The essense of | 
religion was “communion with God,” and prayer | 
was the means thereto. This, to be efficacious, 
should express the fervent ecstasy of the soul, di- 
vested, as it were, of its earthly shell. Artificial 
means, such as violent gesturing, shouting and 
swaying back and forth, might be resorted to in 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH Hisrory 289 


order to attain the necessary state of exalta- 
tion. Besht opposed the chief demand of the 
Arian Cabalists by declaring that long fasting, 
mortification of the flesh and other practices of 
asceticism were both injurious and sinful, for 
God loved men of cheerful and joyous disposi- 
tion rather than men made wretched by self- 
inflicted suffering. The inner feeling was what 
counted in religion, not the outward ceremonial, 
and he further condemned as harmful excessive 
observance of the minute details of ritual. The 
truly pious man, or Hassid, served his God not 
merely by conforming to the established rites of 
his faith, but by remembering Him at every 
moment of his daily life, in his work and in his 
thoughts. Constant communion with God 
through the spirit might bring a man the gifts 
of clairvoyance, of prophecy and of power to 
perform miracles. The righteous man, or Tzad- 
dik, was one who has come, through the piety 
of his life, into closer touch with God than 
other men, and therefore his role in life was to 
act as intermediary between his fellow-men and 
the Lord. Only with the help of the Tzaddik 
could perfect purity of soul be attained and 
with it all earthly and heavenly blessings. The 
Tzaddik must be held as an object of universal 
reverence as the messenger and favorite of God. 


No better doctrine than Hassidism could have 
been offered to meet the needs of the Jews of 


290 THe TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


Podolia, Galicia and Volhynia. On the one hand, 
it laid stress upon the principle of simple and 
implicit faith which all could understand, 
whereas the unattainable learning and scholar- 
ship of the older theology was beyond the minds 
of the great majority; and on the other hand 
it held out the opportunity of salvation through 
the miracle-working Tzaddik, always a highly 
attractive figure in the eyes of the average 
man. 

Israel Besht as the Supreme Tzaddik became 
a popular idol, and rumors of the miracles ac- 
complished and of the eloquent discourses deliv- 
ered by this teacher of Medzhibozh brought even 
men of learning, rabbis and preachers, to visit 
him. He was said to have received divine reve- 
lations directly from the prophet Elijah. 


Besht himself had the utmost belief in the 
high mission to which he had been called. About 
1750 he sent to Palestine a message of prophecy 
wherein he described a marvellous vision that 
had come to him. His soul, he said, had been 
transported to heaven where he had beheld the 
Messiah and many souls of the dead. “Tell me, 
O Master,” he had said to the Messiah, “when 
You will appear on earth?” And the Messiah 
had answered, “This is the token of my com- 
ing:. when your teachings shall everywhere be 
known and when all men will have the power 
to perform those miracles which you now per- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 291 


form, then the time of great joy and salvation 
will have arrived.” 

Besht died in 1770 at Medzibozh, surrounded 
by his devoted disciples. 


§ 60. 
The Struggle Between the Rabbis and the 
Hassidim. 

Besht’s work was carried on by his disciples, 
chief amongst whom were Behr, a preacher of 
Mezherich, and Jacob-Joseph Cohen, though 
the former was held to be the great Tzaddik’s 
direct successor. While he lived his town of 
Mezherich in Volhynia became the Mecca of 
Hassidism as Medzhibozh had been before. 
From all over Poland and even from Luthuania 
disciples came to the Master to be prepared for 
the mission of Tzaddiks. When Behr died, Ja- 
cob-Joseph Cohen, the preacher and rabbi of 
the cities of Nemirov and Polonny, rose to first 
eminence as a Hassidist. In his written works, 
Toldoth Yakob Yosef, etc., he set down for 
the first time, sayings of Besht’s which he had 
direct from the lips of the founder of the move- 
ment (1780). These books formed the nucleus 
of an extensive Hassidic literature, to which 
many prominent Tzaddiks contributed as time 
went on. 

By the end of the XVIIIth century Hassid- 
ism was spreading like wild-fire throughout 
Poland and Lithuania, In Podolia and Volhy- 


292 Tue TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


nia whole communities went over to the new 
doctrine. The Hassidim had their own syna- 
gogues, where they conducted the services in 
their own peculiar manner, with shouts and vio- 
lent gesticulation; they also slightly altered the 
order of the services and the contents of the 
prayers. In Lithuania and White Russia, how- 
ever, the strongholds of the Talmudists, they 
met at first in secret, for fear of persecution. 


The Tzaddiks, most of them disciples of 
Behr, were the leaders of the Hassidim. ‘The 
most eminent were Elimelech of Lizno in Gali- 
cia, Boruch of Tulchyn, a grandson of Besht 
in Podolia, Levi-Itzhok of Berdichev in Vol- 
hynia and Zalman Shneersohn in Lithuania and 
White Russia. The Tzaddiks of Podolia and 
Galicia were miracle-workers as well as teach- 
ers of religion, and throngs of believers dogged 
their footsteps, imploring cures for their dis- 
eases, blessings, predictions of their future, and 
so forth. Many of the Tzaddiks profaned Besht’s 
teachings by abusing the people’s credulity and 
accepting money in payment for their advice 
and prophecies. Zalman-Shneersohn was the > 
only one who refused to stoop to the role of 
bogus miracle-worker. 

A native of Liozno, a town in the govern- 
ment of Mohilev, Zalman received his early edu- 
cation in the Talmudic schools. At the age of 
twenty he went to Mezherich and became con- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 293 


verted to Hassidism under Rabbi Behr, after 
which he returned home as a preacher of the 
new doctrine, though in another form, more 
rational than the one adopted by the Tzaddiks 
in the South. Zalman’s teachings won him many 
followers in Lithuania and White Russia (1780- 
1800). 


The rapid spread of MHassidism greatly 
alarmed the rabbis who still exercised great 
power in Lithuania. The chief of the Lithua- 
nian rabbis at that period was Elijah of Vilna, 
to whom the ancient honorable title of Gaon 
had been given (1720-1797). He was a man of 
distinguished mind which a lifetime devoted to 
unravelling Talmudic intricacies had rendered 
extraordinarily sharp-witted. From his earliest 
childhood he had given proof of unusual talent. 
At the tender age of six he was already a stu- 
dent of the Talmud, and at eleven he was tak- 
ing part in Talmudic debates of the most com- 
plicated kind, astounding the old rabbis by the 
extent of his knowledge. He quickly became 
master of every subject he undertook to 
learn. He was familiar with the Cabala, and 
incidentally picked up a scattered knowledge 
of mathematics, astronomy and physics, as much 
as he needed for the understanding of certain 
passages in the Talmud. His home was in 
Vilna where he lived the life of a hermit, ab- 
sorbed by his books. He ate far too little, slept 


294 THe TRANSITION PERIOD—1750-1795. 


only two hours a day, and very seldom spoke to 
strangers on ordinary subjects outside the range 
of his studies. At certain hours, however, he 
lectured on the Talmud before his pupils. The 
outstanding features of his life were his strict 
observance of the minutest details of religious 
rites and his ascetic mode of existence, in which 
there was no place except for study and pious 
practices. 


It was inevitable that he should be deeply 
opposed to Hassidism which rejected the rigid 
observances he believed so essential, as well as 
his gloomy asceticism, and denied the import- 
ance of scholarship. Elijah the Gaon assumed 
the leadership of the rabbis, and declared war 
in their name upon the doctrine of Besht. 


In Vilna and other cities all the members of 
the Hassidic sect were publicly cursed in the 
synagogues (1772-1781). The Hassid syna- 
gogues throughout Lithuania were closed and 
all the books dealing with the new doctrine 
were burnt. The Hassidim were declared apos- 
tates and were expelled from many communi- 
ties. The zealous loyalists to the Rabbinist — 
theology called themselves “Mithnagdim,” 1. e., 
opponents of the new teachings. Since most of 
the Kahal elders in Lithuania and White Rus- 
sia belonged to the latter party, the Hassidim 
found themselves faced with persecution in their 
public, as well as in their religious, life. But 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 295 


all efforts were powerless to impede the growth 
of the new order. In 1796 the Kahals, with 
Elijah’s permission, set another anti-Hassidist 
campaign in operation. 

The death of Elijah the Gaon occurred in 
1797, and the persecuted Hassidim made no 
attempt to conceal their joy at the event, which 
fanned the fury of the Rabbinists against them 
into violent flame. Unable to contain their rage 
and hatred for the apostates any longer, the 
Mithnagdim resolved to denounce the leaders of 
the sect before the Russian government, declar- 
ing them to be preachers of a dangerous heresy. 
Zalman Shneersohn found himself arrested and 
taken to St. Petersburg where, after submitting 
to a cross-examination in the Secret Chancel- 
lery, he was thrown into prison. The appeals 
of his fellow-Hassidim, however, soon set him 
free (1798) though not for long. ‘Two years 
later he was again arrested as a result of his 
enemy’s denunciations, and this time he re- 
mained imprisoned until the accession of Alex- 
ander I, when he was finally restored to free- 
dom. He returned to Liozno, his original home, 
but moved later to Ladi in the Mohilev govern- 
ment, where he conitnued his activities as leader 
of his many followers, the Habad Hassidim.* 





*Zalman’s teachings as set forth in his book “Tania,” 
were founded upon three principles: wisdom, understanding 
and knowledge, or in Hebrew, “chochma, cyna, deah,” which 
three words abbreviated, formed the “Habad.” 


296 Tur Transition PERrop—1750-1795. 


The struggle between the two great parties 
in Lithuania and White Russia resulted in the 
founding of separate communities by the Hassi- 
dim, and for a great many years the members 
of the rival sects ceased even to intermarry. 
In Podolia and the Southwest, the Hassidim 
almost entirely supplanted the Mithnagdim, and 
the T'zaddiks acquired the same spiritual dom- 
ination of the people as had once been the 
prerogative of the rabbis. 

The one spot of common ground upon which 
the ideas of the two conflicting sects met was 
their common hostility towards the new liberal 
education then coming into vogue in German 
Jewry. So uncompromising was their attitude 
in this connection that Polish-Russian Jews, 
whose inclinations tended towards secular learn- 
ing usually went abroad to get it, and Germany 
was the country they most often chose. 

One of these emigrants was a Lithuanian Jew 
named Solomon Maimon_ (1753-1800). His 
father was a country lease-holder near Nezvizh 
in the government of Minsk, and like all the 
other children he knew, he was brought up on 
the Talmud. According to the custom of the 
time, his parents had him married at twelve, but 
he did not give up his studies. From the Tal- 
mud he passed to the Cabala and then to the 
religious philosophy of Maimonides. ‘The boy’s 
mind thirsted for new learning which was not 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 297 


to be found where he lived, and so in 1777 he 
left his home and family and went to Germany 
to get himself educated in science. At first he 
lived in Ko6nigsberg and later in Berlin, suffer- 
ing’ great privation and tasting all the bitter- 
ness of an exile‘s life in a foreign land. In Ber- 
lin he met Mendelsohn and was introduced into 
the great man’s circle. He did not take long 
to become familiar with German literature and 
science, and he next undertook the study of 
philosophy, more especially the theories of 
Emanuel Kant. 

The radical change from his Lithuanian se- 
clusion to the life of an educated European, pro- 
foundly affected Maimon; he was beset by 
doubt, and his religious belief hung precariously 
in the balance. His works of scholarship writ- 
ten in German were confined to the analysis of 
abstruse philosophical problems, but in 1792 he 
published his “Autobiography,” wherein he 
painted a vivid picture of the everyday life and 
customs of the Polish-Lithuanian Jews and told 
the sad story of his own career. He died alone 
in Silesia, in 1800. During the latter years of 
his life Maimon had become estranged from the 
Jewish people. His contribution towards their 
enlightenment was small, consisting of scarcely 
more than his single published work in Hebrew, 
an unfinished commentary on Maimonides’ 
“Guide.” 


CHAPTER XI 


A SURVEY OF THE PrincipaAL Events DuriIne 
THe NINETEENTH CENTURY. 


§ 61. 
The French Revolution. 


HE end of the XVIIIth century saw a 
vast upheaval in Europe which altered 
a|| the political condition of several na- 
4| tions. With the great French Revolu- 
| tion, the principles of “Liberty, Fra- 
ternity and Equality’ were enunciated for the 
first time, and men of all classes and religions 
were proclaimed equal. No exception was made 
in the case of the Jews, who, having reappeared 
in France during that century, found them- 
selves on the same political footing as the rest 
of the people.* 








*Since their expulsion in 1394, the Jews made no attempt 
to reenter France until almost three hundred years later. 
Only Marranos, or “secret Jews,’ fugitives from Spain, 
lived in the French kingdom under the name of “Neo- 
Christians.” At the end of the XVIIth century, however, a 
great many Jews from the German provinces of Alsace and 
Lorraine became the subjects of Louis XIV when he at- 
tached those territories to his own. More Jews entered 
France during the XVIIth century, some even living in Paris, 
but their condition as citizens was no less degrading than it 
had been in Germany. 

298 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 299 


The most eminent and active sponsors of the 
revolution, such as Mirabeau and his friends, 
demanded of the National Assembly that the 
Jews receive all civil rights enjoyed by Christ- 
lans (1780), and in this they were enthusiastic- 
ally supported by the delegates from the Jewish 
communities of Paris and other cities. Only 
the Catholic and Alsatian deputies opposed the 
proposal, but after many sessions spent in violent 
debate, the pro-Jewish parties won and King 
Louis X VIth set his seal to the Assembly’s rul- 
ing (September 28, 1791). This was the first in- 
stance in European history of a Jewish emanci- 
pation, that is, of a sucessful movement to free 
them of their age-long civil and political dis- 
abilities. | 

The Christians were not to be easily recon- 
ciled, however. In Alsace, the home of quite 
a large Jewish population, hostility towards the 
enfranchised people showed no signs of abating 
for a long while. 

The Emperor Napoleon I, who usurped the 
political power after the Revolution, could not 
decide upon a definite attitude to adopt. In 
1806 he summoned Jewish delegates from all 
over France, Italy and Holland to appear be- 
fore him. Abraham Furtado of Bordeaux, a 
wealthy Sephardic Jew, presided over the assem- 
bly. The delegates were called upon to answer 
twelve questions bearing on the compatibility of 


200 Events Durinc XI XtH CENTURY 


Jewish religious law with French civil law. They 
replied that the Jews living in France regarded 
that country as their own, and held its laws 
equally sacred with the laws of their faith. 'This 
answer greatly pleased the emperor, who shortly 
afterwards, established a Sanhedrin in Paris, 
consisting of seventy-one members with the old- 
est rabbis in France at their head. The purpose 
this council was to evolve the best possible sys- 
tem of governing the French-Jewish communi- 
ties. The Sanhedrin recommended the establish- 
ment of a head rabbinical consistory at Paris 
both necessary and expedient, with secondary 
consistories in the provinces. It was the function 
of these bodies to manage the affairs of their 
communities and see that the civil laws of the 
country were duly respected. They were ac- 
cordingly established as the Sanhedrin advised 
and survive to the present day. 

Napoleon’s victories cleared the way for Jew- 
ish emancipation in other European countries. 
With the French domination of Italy the Jews 
there found themselves free, and in Holland 
the last restrictions against them were removed. | 


§ 62 


The Progress of Enlightenment in Western 
Europe. 


In Germany, the home of the new Jewish 
education, the improvement in the civil condi- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 801 


tion of the persecuted people did not long con- 
tinue. In the territories forming the “Union of 
the Rhine,” created by Napoleon, they had been 
given equal rights with the other citizens, and 
Prussia, while under the Emperor’s heel, took 
similar steps to liberate them. In an edict is- 
sued in 1812, Frederick-William II, the king, 
declared the necessity of granting the Prussian 
Jews full civil rights. No sooner, however, had 
Germany shaken off Napoleon’s yoke than this 
privilege, so graciously bestowed, was instantly 
revoked. 

In 1815 the European monarchs formed the 
“Holy Alliance” for the purpose of putting 
a check on liberal ideas and re-establishing the 
old political conditions. Germany and Austria 
were the most ardent advocates of this reaction- 
ary movement which persisted for more than 
thirty years. 

All activities on the Jews’ behalf immediately 
ceased and the various German governments re- 
stricted their rights again as before. In several 
places there was even a recurrence of anti-Semi- 
tic outbreaks such as were common in the Mid. 
dle Ages. Wurzburg, Bamberg and a few other 
cities witnessed anti-Jewish riots in 1819 and 
1820. 

This time the Jews felt their civil and politic- 
al disabilities more keenly than ever before, for 
they had had time to grow used to German cul- 


802 Events Durinec XI XtTH CENTURY 


ture, and had but recently taken an active part 
in the wars to free Germany from the French 
conqueror. They regarded themselves as guod 
citizens with all other Germans of the common 
Fatherland, when suddenly those same Germans 
turned round and began to treat them as aliens 
all over again. Not every Jew received the shock 
of this insult with the same bitterness and dis- 
may. Many of the educated ones had already 
mingled with the Germans so completely that 
they had quite forgotten their own people. In 
Berlin and elsewhere many families became con- 
verted to Christianity, amongst them even Dor- 
othea and Henrietta Mendelsohn, the philos- 
opher Moses Mendelsohn’s daughters. Men and 
women of culture, both Christian and Jewish, 
met in the salons of the capital, and marriages 
between Christian men and Jewesses were the 
common result, the wives adopting their hus- 
bands’ religion. The greatest representatives of 
German literature of that period, Borne (died 
1837) and Heine (died 1856), both renounced 
Judiasm in their youth, but in their latter years 
they made atonement for their apostasy by be- 
coming their people’s ardent champions. 


Borne, a gifted publicist and apostle of free- 
dom, held the faults of the German character 
up to the light, and none more ruthlessly than 
their barbarian prejudice against the Jews in 
their midst. Heine, greatest of German poets 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstToRY 803 


after Goethe, expressed in some of his wonder- 
ful verse the sorrows of his race, and wrote a 
novel of Jewish life in the Middle Ages, “The 
Rabbi of Bacharach.” Towards the end of his 
career he wrote his inspired lines on the Bible. 


There were other Jews in public life who de- 
voted all their energies to the service of their 
people. Gabriel Riesser, the editor of a maga- 
zine in German called “The Jew” (1830), was 
a tireless advocate of Jewish emancipation, and 
labored continuously to arouse his co-religion- 
ists’ sense of self-respect while heaping censure 
on the apostates. “The son who is ashamed of 
his father is without honor,” he would say, “and 
the generation ashamed of its past likewise.” 
Other writers produced works on Jewish learn- 
ing and history. The most prolific of these was 
Leopold Zunz, called the father of the new 
Jewish historiography. The period of his great- 
est activity was from 1825 to 1855. His re- 
_markable researches in the field of the literature, 
religious poetry and sacred rites of the Middle 
Ages, had thrown much light on a particular 
phase of Jewish spiritual activity which until 
then had remained in obscurity. M. Yost, a 
fellow-student of Zunz, wrote the history of the 
Jewish people from antiquity to his own day, 
in a series of popular volumes. Both these writ- 
ers used the German language. 


In these historical works the educated reader 


804 Events Durinc XI XtH CENTURY 


was able to follow the unfolding picture of the 
development of Judaism. Free-thinking writ- 
ers expounded the theory that the innumerable 
rituals and laws prescribed by the 'Talmudists 
and rabbis of bygone ages were not applicable 
to modern Jewish life. ‘They even pointed out 
that so heavy a burden as their observance en- 
tailed was a grave source of danger to the reli- 
gion, for the modern educated Jew, unable to 
observe them all, tended to reject with the un- 
important laws of a later date, the basic com- 
mandments of the Bible as well, until he had 
renounced his faith altogether. They demanded 
reforms made in the light of altered conditions. 
The leader of the reformists of 1840 was Abra- 
ham Geiger, rabbi of Breslau, a gifted historian 
of his race. His party, however, lacked unity; 
some devoted their attention to such external 
matters as the beautifying of synagogues and 
embellishing of the services, others began by 
rejecting the fundamental principles of the re- 
ligion instead of merely changing rituals of 
minor importance. A party representing the 
Orthodox Jews duly appeared in declared oppo- 
sition to the reformists. Rabbi Samson-Raphael 
Hirsch, a one-time fellow student of Geiger’s, 
was at its head. “To adjust life to religion, not | 
religion to life” was the motto of these “True © 
Believers” as they called themselves. The two 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HISTORY 805 


factions met in a desperate struggle for the up- 
per hand. 

A notable expansion in the intellectual ac- 
tivity of the French, Italian and Austrian Jews 
was meanwhile taking place, though to a lesser 
degree than in Germany. The most prominent 
figures in Jewish learning in France during the 
first half of the XIXth century were Salvador, | 
the author of important works on the Mosaic 
law, the history of Roman domination in Judea 
and the origin of Christianity, and Munck, the 
famous Orientalist whose books threw consider- 
tble light upon Hebrew-Arabic thought during 
the Middle Ages. 


In Italy a great thinker, Samuel David Luz- 
zato (1800-65), one of the teachers in the rab- 
binical seminary in Padua, rose to high emi- 
nence. The author of many historical and scien- 
tific works, Luzzato wrote of his conviction that 
Judaism embodied the most sublime philosoph- 
ical truths and the most perfect system of mor- 
ality ever devised. In his latter years he be- 
came convinced of the essential fallacy that 
underlay the new European culture, and con- 
sidered the pure principles of Judaism the one 
solid bulwark against the encroachments of uni- 
versal moral decay. 

The spirit of free criticism and research pene- 
trated even into the most obscure Austrian 
provinces which had once been Polish Galicia 


806 Events Durtine XIXtH CENTURY 

and where Hassidism, hostile to every form of 
European enlightenment, reigned supreme. Yet 
even there a few men cropped up whom the new 
intellectual movement from Germany swept 
along on its tide. Nachman Krochmal of Brody 
(died 1850), wrote of the history of Judaism 
throughout the ages in the light of modern 
thought (“More Nebuche-hazman’’) and his pu- 
piu, Solomon Jehuda Rappoport of Prague, 
analyzed, after the manner of Zunz, many im- 
portant epochs of Hebrew literature. In spite of 
his piety, Rappoport was persecuted by the 
Hassidists and rabbis, who considered the appli- 
cation of scientific method to the study of the 
ancient writings an act of sacrilege. These ob- 
scurantists were often made the butt of two 
Galician satirists’ wit, Joseph Pearl lampooning 
them in his “Megalle Temirin” and Isaac Erter 
in his “Hazofe.” 


§ 63. 

The Russian Jews Under Alexander I and 
Nicholas I. — he 
The liberal tendencies rife throughout West- 
ern Europe at the beginning of the XIXth cen- 
tury, penetrated for a short time into Russia 
where the great mass of Jews had made their 
homes after the annexation of Poland. 'The 
Emperor Alexander I (1801-25), grandson of 
Catherine the Great, established a special com- 
mittee to deal with the improvement of the 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIstToRY 807 


Jews’ condition, and in 1804 he ratified the 
“Statute concerning the organization of the 
Jews” drafted by that committee. The first 
provision of the Statute was for educational re- 
form; Jews were allowed to enroll in Russian 
schools and steps were taken to enable them 
all to learn the Russian language. They fell 
into four economic divisions, agriculturists, man- 
ufacturers and artisans, merchants, and burgh- 
ers. Extensive privileges were. granted to the 
members of the first group, particularly in re- 
gard to their exemption from certain taxes. Inn- 
keeping and the sale of intoxicants, and lease- 
holding of peasants’ lands, were strictly pro- 
hibited however, and in order that these restric- 
tions might not be infringed, Jews were de- 
barred from living in villages. As an induce- 
ment to them to become farmers, the govern- 
ment set aside vacant land on the steppes of 
New Russia for their use and offered special 
privileges to would-be settlers. Several hundred 
families from the Northwestern provinces re- 
sponded to the call, and the first Jewish agricul- 
tural colonies were founded in Southern Russia 
in 1808. The experiment was a failure. On 
the one hand the Jews had never been accus- 
tomed to life on the land, and on the other, they 
found themselves faced with insurmountable dif- 
ficulties in trying to tame the wilderness they 
had been sent to colonize. The settlements fell 


808 Events Durinc XI XtTH CunTURY 


into decay and were only recently re-organized. 

The Russian government’s solicitude for the 
welfare of the Jews did not last very long. The 
war with Napoleon (1812) and Russia’s en- 
trance into the “Holy Alliance” (1815), di- 
verted Alexander’s attention from the Jewish 
question, so that the second half of his reign 
saw the early liberal reforms superseded by very 
different measures. ‘The establishment of the 
“Society of Israelite Christians” in 1817 was an 
abortive attempt to spread Christianity amongst 
them. They were expelled from villages to 
cities with great harshness, and the reforms pro- 
vided for in the Statute of 1804 which aimed at 
their cultural and economic betterment were 
never carried out. 


Under Nicholas I (1825-45) their condition 
grew considerably worse. The medieval belief 
persisted in all government circles that the Jew- 
ish question could be solved in one way only, 
by compelling the Jews to adopt the religion 
and customs of the Russian people. The brutal 
legislation of the time was designed with that 
sole end in view. In 1827 a ukase was issued » 
making military service compulsory for all 
Jews, under a conscription system of great se- 
verity. The protracted service lasting about 25 
years in distant outposts of the empire, tore the 
young Jew away from his family and com- 
munity, and accustomed him to a mode of life 


OvuTLINE OF JEWIsH History 809 


utterly new and foreign to him. Time after 
time young Jewish boys, scarcely more than 
children, were drafted into military service, and 
usually sent to the far eastern governments 
where they were put into special battalions of 
“cantonist” minors. Under pressure from their 
superior officers, most of these Jewish “can- 
tonists’” went over to the Greek-Orthodox faith 
and never returned to their homes again. 

Other cruel laws restricted the right of Jews 
to live where they preferred or to choose their 
trades and occupations. No Jew was allowed 
to take up permanent residence outside the for- 
mer Polish provinces which formed the “Jew- 
ish pale.” 

It was not until the last ten years of Nich- 
olas’ reign that the government realized that 
merely restrictive measures could not meet the 
Jewish problem, and that it would be necessary 
to see that their educational status was raised 
before anything effective could be done. Fol- 
lowing the advice of Uvarov, the minister of 
education, elementary schools were founded in 
1840 where general subjects formed part of the 
curriculum, and two rabbinical schools in Vilna 
and Zhitomir respectively took care of the train- 
ing of rabbis and teachers. 

The majority of the Jews, whom the govern- 
ment’s former cruelty had thoroughly fright- 
ened, met these new measures with deep distrust 


810 Events Durtinc XI XtTH CrEentTURY 


and saw in the projected “school-conscription” 
yet another danger come to menace their race 
and their religion. 


The peculiar civil situation of the Russian 
Jews created favorable conditions for their spir- 
itual isolation from the rest of the population. 
Rabbinism and Hassidism were at one in pre- 
venting any new ideas from penetrating into 
the popular mind; though rival sects in every 
other respect, they were ever ready to join 
forces to combat the common foe of liberal 
education. ‘The intellectual tendencies of the 
time contrived nevertheless to thrust out roots 
from Western Kurope even as far as the dis- 
tant eastern places where the Jews still went in 
darkness. 


Isaac-Behr Levinsohn of Krementz (1786- 
1860) was amongst the most ardent advocates 
of liberal education for the Russian. Jew, and 
in his books which were written in Hebrew, he 
pointed out that the study of the Bible and of 
the Hebrew language ought to be given prefer- 
ence over Talmudic learning. Neither, he said, 
was there any article of the Jewish religion that » 
forbade the study of foreign tongues or of sec- 
ular subjects. (“Theuda-b’Israel,” 1828.) He 
also wrote scientific articles on the history of 
Biblical and Talmudic Judaism (“Beth-Je- 
huda” and “Zerubabel’), as well a work de- 
voted to a refutation of the outrageous legends 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 811 


accusing the Jews of using Christian blood for 
ritual purposes. With these and other efforts 
on behalf of his race, Levinsohn worked hard 
in the hope of bettering the condition of his 
unhappy fellow-Jews. Few of them appreci- 
ated his efforts, however; indeed he was com- 
monly regarded by the Hassidim, who formed 
the greater part of the Hebrew populace, as an 
apostate and traitor to his religion. 


The Rabbinists frowned similarly upon the 
“circle of the enlightened” (Maskilim), founded 
at Vilna about that time, with the chief object 
of restoring the use of pure Biblical Hebrew in 
literary composition. One of the members, Mor- 
decai-Aaron Guinzburg (died 1846), labored 
with much success in the cause of prose style. 
His own works, consisting of books on travel, 
stories, historical sketches and an autobiography, 
marking a considerable advance on the style of 
his generation. (“Debir,” “Abiezer,” etc.) Abra- 
ham-Behr Lebenson (“Adam”) of Vilna re- 
vived the Hebrew verse-forms in his “Songs in 
the Holy Language” (“Shire Sefat Kodesh,”’ 
1842.) For poetic gift and emotional quality, 
he was surpassed by Mikhel Lebenson, his son, 
whose death at the age of twenty-four (1852) 
brought a bright career to an untimely end. 
His “Songs of Zion” and “The Harp of Zion” 
(“Shire Beth Zion,” “Kinor beth Zion”) rank 
with the finest poetry in the Hebrew tongue. 


812 Events Durinc XI XtTH CENTURY 


§ 64. 


The Jews of Western Europe During the 
Second Half of the XIXth Century. 


In 1848 the political condition of the coun- 
tries in Western Europe underwent a radical 
change. Revolutions in Germany, Austria and 
Italy resulted in a restriction of monarchical 
power and a great increase of popular influ- 
ence in matters of government. ‘The passing 
from a despotic to a constitutional regime meant 
a general movement towards political and social 
emancipation, and the Jews, whose leaders had 
largely helped to bring about the new order, 
found themselves once more in possession of 
rights as citizens. The vice-president of the 
Constitutional Assembly at Frankfort, where 
the new German constitution was being drawn 
up, was Gabriel Riesser, an old champion of 
Jewish freedom, and the council ruled that Ger- 
man subjects of whatever denomination were 
entitled to equal rights under the state. A sim- 
ilar decision was reached by the Prussian “Na- 
tional Assembly” then in session in Berlin. All 
over Germany equal rights for Jews were en- 
sured by law, and opponents of the new regime 
who in 1850 were in the majority, found their 
attempts to restrict those rights sternly resisted 
by the members of more liberal society in which 
Jews were already playing an influential part. 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HiIsTorY 813 


The added strength gained by Prussia after the 
war with Austria (1866), together with the uni- 
fication of Germany following the Franco-Prus- 
sian war of 1870, lent further prestige to the 
German constitutional regime, and the position 
of the emancipated Jews, so closely bound up 
with it, grew accordingly more secure. Jews 
of talent were outstanding figures in all fields 
of political, social and literary activity. 


The emancipation of their Austrian co-reli- 
gionists proceeded along much the same lines. 
The consolidation of the Jews’ position in that 
country was, however, a far more difficult task 
owing to the continual struggles for supremacy 
that were carried on within the empire by the 
various elements of its heterogeneous popula- 
tion. The liberal constitution granted in 1848 
was frequently altered and abridged, but the 
constitution of 1867 ultimately made definite 
provision for the Jews’ complete enfranchise- 
ment in Austria-Hungary. 

They were still better off in France, after the 
revolution of February, 1848. In that country, 
which had been the first in all Kurope to spon- 
sor a movement to give freedom to the Jews, 
a Jew, Adolphe Cremieux, was twice Minister 
of Justice. (In 1848 and in 1870.) 

Cremieux was an ardent champion of his peo- 
ple’s cause. In 1860 he founded in Paris a 
society called the “Universal Jewish Alliance,” 


314, Events DuriInc XI XtTH CENTURY 


with the two-fold object of protecting Jewish 
interests in all lands and of spreading European 
_ education in all their communities. It was only 
in the Mahometan countries of the East, Tur- 
key, Algeria, Morocco and Tunis, that the Alb- 
ance was able to fulfill both of these purposes. 

England granted the Jews equal political 
rights in the year 1858, adding this franchise 
to the civil rights that were theirs already. The 
newly emancipated people soon began to return 
their own representatives to the Parliament of 
Great Britain, and the honorary position of 
Lord Mayor of London was more than once 
occupied by a Jew. Lord Beaconsfield (Ben- 
jamin Disraeli), an outstanding figure in the 
history of that period and for many years 
Prime Minister of England, was a Jew and re- 
mained a sympathetic friend of his fellow-Jews 
all his life. The great Anglo-Jewish philan- 
thropist, Moses Montefiore, labored indefatiga- 
bly for the welfare of the Jewish people all the 
world over, and interested himself especially in’ 
their communities in Palestine. 

By the end of the third quarter of the XI-Xth 
century, Jews had been granted equal rights in 
every European country under constitutional 
government. Italy (since 1848), Sweden and 
Denmark, and later on, Bulgaria (1878), Ser- 
bia and Roumania, however, stubbornly refuse 
to emancipate the Jews within their borders and 


OUTLINE oF JEWISH HIsToRY 815 


continue to regard them as aliens to whom un- 
restricted civil rights cannot be granted. 


The work of Jewish historical research begun 
by Zunz and Yost, was carried on by other 
scholars during the second half of the XIXth 
century, more especially in Germany. ‘The 
most eminent of these historians was Graetz, 
the author of an exhaustive “History of the Jews 
from Ancient to Modern Times,” in eleven vol- 
umes (1854-1876). Many other men of learn- 
ing devoted their talents to the study of the 
various epochs in the history of their race. 


The civil emancipation of the Jews of West- 
ern Kurope, while beneficial in many respects, 
was not without its less desirable consequences. 
The inevitable and natural intercourse between 
Jews and Christians who now had their social 
and political interests in common, very often 
resulted in a complete fusion of the two. ‘This 
“assimilation” tendency made considerable head- 
way in Germany and France, where certain of 
the Jews, calling themselves Germans or 
Frenchmen “of Mosaic faith,’ made a small 
matter of breaking the religious tie which, they 
said, inevitably weakened under the influence of 
new ideas and which alone bound them to their 
people. The younger generation drifted farther 
and farther from its Jewish sources and took 
an ever-declining interest in the concerns of 
their race, being gradually absorbed by the na- 


816 Events Durtinc XI XtH CENTURY 


tions in whose midst they had been born and 
raised. This state of estrangement might have 
assumed an alarming aspect had not the attitude 
of Christian Europe towards them suddenly 
changed, bringing them up short in their pro- 
gress towards assimilation. 

The last quarter of the XIXth century saw 
a new anti-Jewish movement in Kurope. It 
went by the name of “anti-Semitism” and re- 
solved itself into an attempt to revive the old 
Jew-baiting practices of the Middle Ages un- 
der a new disguise. ‘The rapid progress the 
Jews, once emancipated, had made in all fields 
of social and industrial activity had aroused the 
jealous fear of those sections of Christian so- 
ciety which still clung to the idea of the social 
inferiority of the Hebrew people. It was de- 
clared that the Jew, being a Semite on account 
of his racial characteristics, was not fitted to 
tempt universal control, which in the domains 
live side by side with the Aryan Christian. His 
superior intellectual endowments led him to at- 
of industry and finance, of politics and juris- 
prudence, of journalism and science, he was 
already in a fair way to achieve, and the Chris- 
tian was being forced out. The anti-Semites 
demanded the revocation of civil rights for 
Jews, and some even advocated such restrictions 
as would spell total ruin for the undesired peo- 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 317 


ple and compel them to emigrate to other coun- 
tries. 


Anti-Semitism made its first appearance m “ 
Germany during the reign of William I when 
the empire was under the administration of the 
famous chancellor, Bismarck. One of the found- 
ers of the anti-Semitic party was a clergyman 
named Stocker, the royal chaplain in Berlin 
(1880). From 1880 to 1890 the party’s influ- 
ence increased greatly; its members sat in the 
Reichstag, it published its own newspapers and 
sent its agents far and wide to incite popular 
uprising against the Jews. After 1890 anti- 
Semitism went no further in Germany, but in 
Austria it was gathering momentum, as also in 
France in spite of the fact that that country 
had been the original home of Jewish freedom 
in the West of Europe. In Austria, with the 
various nationalities composing its population 
continually at odds, the Jews had enemies in 
the ranks of Germans, Czechs, Poles and others. 


The French anti-Semites began operations by 
attacking Jews in the newspapers (Drumont), 
and continued their campaign in the Chamber 
of Deputies and in public affairs where Jews 
were concerned. In 1894 they brought a false 
charge against Captain Dreyfus, a wealthy Jew 
employed in the War Office. He was accused 
of selling military documents of great import- 
ance, dealing with certain plans of the French 


3818 Events Durinc XI XtH CENTURY 


government, to the representative of an enemy 
power. The crime was high treason. Though 
the charge was obviously without foundation, 
Dreyfus was nevertheless convicted and exiled 
to Devil’s Island in South America. It was 
five years before the political parties who en- 
tered the struggle for and against the convicted 
officer, succeeded in making public the fatal 
error that had sent him into disgrace, and in 
having the unfortunate man brought home 
again. 

The best and most representative Christians 
of all countries condemn the shameful activities 
of the anti-Semites and fight as best they can 
against their influence, but they are not able to 
exterminate this pernicious movement which has 
its roots in class antagonism and in the preju- 
dices of the ignorant masses. 

Anti-Semitism set the Jews of Western Eu- 
rope thinking hard. The Hebrew populations 
at large, which once showed a powerful inclina- 
tion towards fusion, are beginning to realize the 
necessity of uniting for the defence of their 
national integrity against the hostile forces lined 
up to attack them. 


§ 65. 
The Jews in Russia During the Second Half of 
the XIX th Century. 
With the accession of Alexander II to the 
throne of Russia (1855), a more hopeful era 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH HIsToRY 819 


dawned for the Jews in his empire. This great 
ruler, called the ‘Liberator’ on account of his 
putting an end to serfdom and his efforts to 
improve the state administration in all its 
branches, did not neglect the Jews in his re- 
forms. Without making any radical change in 
their situation, the government saw the neces- 
sity of abolishing the most burdensome restric- 
tions under which they had suffered at the 
hands of Alexander’s predecessors. 

X The recruiting of Jewish “cantonists’ was dis- 
continued in 1856. Jewish merchants of the 
first guild, university graduates and artisans 
were allowed to settle in whatever part of the 
country they pleased (1859-65). Secular edu- 
cation had been somewhat encouraged, but the 
elementary schooling still remained in a state of 
almost complete neglect. In 1873 the two 
rabbinical schools and all the government schools 
established by Uvarov, were closed, and in their 
place, Teachers’ Institutes and elementary 
schools of a new kind were established. Only a 
few cities of the Jewish Pale were given ele- 
mentary schools, however, and the old system 
of education, the “kheder” and “yeshiba” con- 
tinued predominant, while in all the other 
classes of Russian society, the young people 
flocked to the new institutions of learning. ‘The 
radical change from “kheder” to “gymnasium” 
and from rabbinical learning to the secular 


820 Events Durinc XI X1tH CENTURY 


study at the universities, came to be quite a 
matter of course for the younger generation of 
Jews. Fathers and sons, as representatives of 
two conflicting generations, struggled together 
with bitterness for the upper hand, the elders 
holding the more fiercely aloof from the native 
Russians, the more strenuous their children’s ef- 
forts grew to assimilate with them. As in West- 
ern Europe there were many cases of educated 
Russian Jews renouncing their allegiance to 
their own race and becoming one with their 
Christian compatriots. 


The truly enlightened Jews who assumed the 
duty of working for their people’s social and 
intellectual uplift, stood btween the orthodox 
majority at the one extreme and the “progres- 
sive’ minority at the other. These “maskilim,” 
or enlightened ones, revived literature in the 
pure Hebrew tongue, as one of the means of 
achieving their purposes. Abraham Mapu of 
Kovno (died 1866) delighted all who read his 
historical novels of Biblical times, ““Ahavath 
Zion,’ and “Ashmath Shomron,” and his por- 
traits of contemporary Russian-Jewish life 
{“Ayit 'Tzabua,”) written in the stately 
Hebrew of the ancient prophets. Leib Gordon, 
a gifted poet (died 1893), exploited every re- 
source of Hebrew verse in his lyrical, satirical 
and epic poems. Both in his prose and in his 
poetry, Gordon exposed the intolerance and 


. OUTLINE OF JEWISH History 821 


conservatism of the rabbis and Tzaddiks with- 
out mercy. Peretz Smolensky (died 1885), 
who published in Vienna a Hebrew Magazine 
called “Ha’Shahar” (The Dawn), which was 
read chiefly by Russian Jews, was a tireless 
champion of the cause of liberal education for 
the Jewish people, and his novels and other 
works all reflected his views on this subject. 
The weeklies “Ha’Melitz,” “Ha’Magid” and 
“Ha Karmel,” (The Interpreter, The Herald 
and Carmel), laid the foundations of Hebrew 
periodical literature (1855-1860). 

Jewish literature in the Russian language 
first began in the sixties with such periodicals 
as “Zion,” “The Dawn” and “The Day’ pub- 
lished in Odessa, and “The Sunrise” and “The 
New Dawn” in St. Petersburg, all of which 
espoused the cause of civil liberty for the Jews. 
Joseph Rabinovitch Levanda and Bogrov, writ- 
ing in Russian, wrote of the bright and dark 
sides of Russian Jewish life. This same Rabin- 
ovitch, together with a noted journalist named 
Orchansky, who died early in life (1875), ar- 
dently championed the emancipation ideal and 
never ceased to demonstrate the falsehood of 
the traditional anti-Jewish charges. Just when 
it seemed most likely that the bright hopes of 
all these writers were at the threshold of ful- 
fillment, the sad events coincident with the out- 


322 Events Durinc XI XtrH Century 


break of anti-Semitimism in the West occurred 
to prove how ill-founded and premature was 
their belief in the better time to come. 


In 1881 and 1882 many cities of Southern 
Russia became the scene of anti-Jewish attacks. 
During these “pogroms,” as they were called, 
Jewish homes were robbed and destroyed, prop- 
erty confiscated and now and then some of the 
Jews were killed. The attacks were particularly 
fierce in the places where the “Haidamaks”’ had 
raged in the X VIIth century, in Elizabethgrad, 
Kieff, Balta and other towns of the former 
Ukraine. Thanks to government intervention, 
the pogroms ceased in the second half of 1882, 
or reculled, if at all, only very casually in the 
districts of the Jewish Pale. The Jews’ civil 
condition, however, took a decided turn for the 
worse. 

During the reign of Alexander II (1881-94), 
laws were passed forbidding the Jews to live 
freely in towns or villages (Temporary Legis- | 
lation of 1882) limiting the number of Jewish 
children in high schools and universities to a 
very small percentage (1887), expelling Jew- 
ish artisans and small merchants from Moscow 
(1891) and prohibiting Jews from being elected 
members of city councils, etc. (1892). Their 
economic situation being disastrously affected 
by these laws, the Jews began to leave Russia 
in great numbers. Most of the emigrants went 


OUTLINE OF JEWISH Hisrory 323 


to America, some smaller groups to Palestine. 
In the last twenty years of the XIXth century 
nearly one million Russian Jews emigrated to 
North America and settled in the United States 
or in Canada. Agricultural colonies were 
founded by them in South America (Argen- 
tine) as well, upon the bounty of the famous 
millionaire-philanthropist Baron de Hirsch. 
The generosity of Baron Edmond Rothschild 
of Paris and of the “Palestine Society” of 
Odessa made similar colonies possible in the 
Holy Land. 


In connection with the events of those last 
decades, the Russian Jews experienced a re- 
vival of their national spirit. This chiefly mani- 
fested itself in the rejection of the assimilation 
idea by a considerable number of the Jewish 
intellectuals, and their voluntary rapproche- 
ment with their own people. Many of them be- 
lieved in the possibility of founding gradually 
an independent Jewish state in Palestine, and 
this idea was strongly upheld by the Palestine 
Society in the “eighties.” It appeared in a new 
form under the name of Zionism in the “nine- 
ties” and spread all over Russia and Western 
Europe wherever Jews were living. Since 1897 
the Zionist party which has acquired a vast 
number of adherents and whose great leader was 
Dr. Herzl of Vienna, has held periodical con- 
ventions in Basle and elsewhere. ‘The party 


824 Events Durinc XI XtH CENTURY 


hopes, with the aid of its “Colonial Bank” and 
its “National Fund,” to develop agriculture and 
industry in Palestine, to encourage immigration 
on a large scale, and as a result, to create a 
great center of Jewry there, based upon the 
principles of freedom and self-government. 


THE END 





Date Due 





on 
vee 























































































































































ine of Jewish history, 























Princeton Theological Seminary—Speer Library 












DS117 .D8 v.3 
An outl 


















































4 
8 pastes aR 
wistioreoran bans lghee evevevevesy ye weer ee rey 































































mf 
r 


